Netizens have criticized the White House’s decision to release five Taliban leaders in exchange for Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl and posted their comments on twitter. They also posted that these five traded prisoners pose a risk to people’s lives. One of them is believed to be responsible for killing thousands of people. Should we feel comfortable releasing this man back to a terrorist group? They also argued that Obama “clearly violated laws” that require him to notify Congress 30 days before any transfer of terrorists from Guantanamo Bay and to explain how the threat posed by such terrorists has been substantially mitigated.
A United States soldier Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl was taken hostage by Taliban since 2009 and was released on 31st May in exchange for five Afghan terrorists at Guantanamo Bay. All the five Taliban leaders were deemed “high” risks to the US and its allies by Joint Task Force Guantanamo (JTF-GTMO). Two of the five, according to files prepared at Guantanamo, have been wanted by the UN for war crimes.
Five terrorist leaders traded for a guy who knowingly and intentionally walked out on his army post. This trade was done on Afghanistan soil, were United States Special Forces backed by choppers and aircraft flew to Afghanistan and made a transfer with 18 Taliban members.
As per the press release from white house Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, 28, was the only American soldier held captive in Afghanistan for five years. Later, he travelled to receive medical care at Bagram Air Field hours after he was freed. President Barack Obama told in a press conference “While Bowe was gone, he was never forgotten by his parents, who thought about him and prayed for him every day and he wasn’t forgotten by his country. The United States of America does not ever leave its men and women in uniform behind.”
John Kerry, secretary of U.S briefed Afghan President Hamid Karzai said about Bergdahl’s release, “As we look to the future in Afghanistan, the United States will continue to support steps that improve the climate for conversations between Afghans about how to end the bloodshed in their country through an Afghan-led reconciliation process.”
Kai Farmer
