In an effort to free American captive Bowe Bergdahl before the bulk of U.S. forces leave Afghanistan this year, the Obama administration has decided to try to resume talks with the Taliban and sweeten an offer to trade Taliban prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for the Army sergeant, current and former officials said.Read the rest here.
Five members of the Afghan Taliban who have been held at Guantanamo for years would be released to protective custody in Qatar in exchange for the release of Bergdahl, who was captured in Afghanistan in 2009 and is thought to be held in Pakistan by the Haqqani network, an allied insurgent group.
For the record, I strongly endorse this move. I expect much hysteria from the usual suspects among the neo-imperialists. But the fact is that POW swaps are an honorable and humane custom with a history almost as old as organized warfare itself. As long as he doesn't give the store away, and it doesn't sound like that's on the table, I applaud the President for making this tough decision. One that is certain to generate a lot of criticism from his political opponents.
Perhaps, as long as the "usual conditions" apply - those swapped must give their "parole" not to take up arms again against those who have released them. Yeah, I know it isn't always honored, but it is symbolically important.
ReplyDeleteIt might help if the USA actually treated this "war" as a "war," with all the usual conditions regarding treatment of prisoners, etc., something the government has consistently denied applies.
The concept of "parole" was usually reserved for officers, whose word of honor meant something once upon a time. Parole was usually granted prior to the formal exchange. Once exchanged, former prisoners were usually not free from any constraints.
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