23-year-old [PFC Bowe] Bergdahl was serving with a unit based in Fort Richardson, Alaska, earlier this month when he vanished, just five months after arriving in Afghanistan, officials said. He was serving at a base near the border with Pakistan in an area known to be a Taliban stronghold (FNC).
On July 2, two U.S. officials conceded a soldier had "just walked off" his base near the border with Pakistan with three Afghans after his shift, but wouldn't release details. Four days later, the Taliban claimed "a drunken American soldier had come out of his garrison" and was captured by mujahedeen (FNC).
He said the date was July 14 and that he was captured when he lagged behind on a patrol. It's clear the video was made no earlier than July 14 because Bergdahl repeated an exaggerated Taliban claim about a Ukrainian helicopter that was shot down that day (AP).
So, there are three different accounts of how Bergdahl was captured. The first, that he simply "walked off . . . with three Afghans," would suggest that he was deserting. Who were the Afghans? The second would explain why he was captured, as I doubt a drunk would be much of an opponent, especially were he to forget his weapon. How did he obtain alcohol in a war zone? Why was he careless enough to imbibe in a war zone? The third, a claim made by Bergdahl, states that he "lagged behind on a patrol." That statement doesn't say much for the US Army, if soldiers are letting their comrades lag behind in a war zone and be captured (which I highly doubt they are). However, as I have no combat experience, I have no idea how patrols function, or how one would obtain alcohol, or what Bergdahl was thinking if he strode off the base with the Afghans. Perhaps he was going for a late-night walk.
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