Bowe Bergdahl Returns To Active Duty, Still Hasn't Spoken To His Parents

The former Taliban captive, who was released six weeks ago into U.S. custody, returned to active military duty Monday. He has not yet seen or spoken with his family.

By
Michelle Broder Van Dyke
by Michelle Broder Van Dyke

BuzzFeed News Reporter

Bowe Bergdahl, the Army sergeant who was held for five years by the Taliban, is "returning to regular duty," officials said Monday.

Handout / Reuters

Bergdahl was released from Taliban captivity in May after the Obama administration made a deal to swap five men held at the U.S. military's detention camp in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

He has been decompressing from the effects of captivity and has been debriefed for any possible intelligence he might have gleaned during his time with the Taliban.

Bergdahl has refused to see his parents or speak to them by phone since he was released from captivity, according to the Wall Street Journal.

AP Photo/Times-News, Ashley Smith

Bergdahl's parents, who live in Hailey, Idaho, reportedly arrived at the Brooke Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston on June 13 after Bergdahl had been recuperating at a U.S. military hospital in Germany for nearly two weeks.

Bergdahl's refusal to see his family suggests a deeper estrangement between the soldier than the military understood when he was released, but officials told the Journal they still don't know the cause of the tension or when it began.

Bergdahl’s parents, Robert and Jani, had been huge advocates for their son's release during his captivity.

AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

The family has put restrictions on what information can be released about Bergdahl’s condition and asked the military not to give updates about communication between him and the family, the paper reported.

This past week Bergdahl was allowed to go, with supervision, to a grocery store, restaurants, shopping centers, and a library as part of the process of getting him reintegrated.

AP Photo/Eric Gay

Bergdahl will take a job "commensurate to his rank" at the U.S. Army North at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston and live in officer quarters there, an official told the BBC. The job will most likely be some type of desk job.

Bergdahl has not yet said anything in public about his experience.

AP Photo/Voice Of Jihad Website via AP video, File

His formal transition back to soldier is now complete, and Army investigators will investigate whether he intended to desert. The 28-year-old could be prosecuted for desertion or face other disciplinary action.

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