To me this just demonstrates how crazy things are in this country that this is so out of whack with our traditions of welcoming back prisoners of war, especially after 5 years in captivity.
| CNN | - |
Hailey,
Idaho (CNN) -- The FBI is investigating threats against the parents of
Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, the latest development in a case that has put
the spotlight on the circumstances surrounding his capture in
Afghanistan and release by the Taliban.
FBI: Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl's parents have received threats
updated 9:44 PM EDT, Sat June 7, 2014
Bergdahl hometown stunned by backlash
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: The FBI is ''taking each threat seriously," an FBI agent says
- Bowe Bergdahl's parents have received threats, the FBI says
- Former member of Bergdahl's platoon says troops were killed in search
- Bergdahl should be put on trial to "get the truth," mother of killed soldier says
"We are working jointly
with our state and local partners and taking each threat seriously," FBI
Special Agent William Facer told CNN in an e-mail on Saturday.
Facer declined to detail
the nature and severity of the threats, and a military spokesperson for
the Bergdahls declined to comment.
Bergdahl's parents
have not been seen publicly since the announcement last week that the
soldier had been freed from five years in captivity at the hands of the
Taliban in exchange for the release of five detainees at Guantanamo Bay
Naval Base.
Soldiers killed after Bergdahl left unit
'Lone Survivor': Bergdahl branded already
Official: Bergdahl held in box or cage
Photos: Americans detained abroad
The news comes as a
fallen soldier's mother and a former member of Bergdahl's unit continued
to assert that troops were killed while searching for the soldier in
eastern Afghanistan.
Pentagon and Army
officials have looked at such claims, and "right now there is no
evidence to back that up," a U.S. official, speaking on condition of
anonymity, has told CNN.
But former Sgt. Matt Vierkant, a member of Bergdahl's platoon, maintains "men were injured and killed in the search for him."
"The mission was to find Bergdahl," he said.
In the week since
Bergdahl was released by the Taliban, a controversy has grown over
whether troops were killed, directly or indirectly, in the search.
Former soldiers involved
in the operations asserted to CNN this week that at least six soldiers
were killed in the search for Bergdahl.
Also making claims of
troop deaths in the Bergdahl search is Sondra Andrews, the mother of 2nd
Lt. Darryn Andrews, who was killed in September 2009.
She endorsed accusations
by former unit members that Bergdahl deserted and caused U.S. troops to
die in the search for him -- though Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has
said it's "unfair" to Bergdahl and his family to presume anything about
his disappearance.
Andrews said she believes her son and other troops "were strictly on a mission looking for Bergdahl."
That information is "based on the men that served with Darryn," she told CNN on Saturday.
Andrews said that military should give her family information "on what Darryn was doing and why they lied to us."
"I'd like to see
Bergdahl given an opportunity to tell his story, be on trial, have the
witnesses come forward and tell their story and get the truth through
that, and then I would like to see the full measure of the law followed
for his punishment," Andrews said.
Bergdahl went missing on
June 30, 2009, in Afghanistan's Paktika province, where he was deployed
with the 1st Battalion, 501st Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat
Team, 25th Infantry Division.
An Army fact-finding
investigation conducted in the months after his disappearance concluded
that Bergdahl left his outpost deliberately and of his own free will,
according to the official, who was briefed on the report.
The Army has no
definitive finding that Bergdahl deserted because that would require
knowing his intent -- something Army officials couldn't learn without
talking to the soldier, a U.S. military official told CNN.
Ed Lavandera and Devon Sayers reported from
Hailey, Idaho, and Azadeh Ansari reported and wrote from Atlanta; CNN's
Chelsea J. Carter and Michael Martinez contributed to this report.
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