Awful news out of Afghanistan….a soldier has been captured by the Taliban:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 2, 2009
Release Number 20090207-01
KABUL, Afghanistan – A U.S. Soldier, who has been missing since June 30th from his assigned unit, is now believed to have been captured by militant forces. We are exhausting all available resources to ascertain his whereabouts and provide for his safe return.
We are not providing any further details at this time in order to protect the welfare of the Soldier.
The media:
KABUL — Insurgents have captured an American soldier in eastern Afghanistan, the US military said Thursday.
Spokeswoman Capt. Elizabeth Mathias said the soldier went missing Tuesday.
“We are using all of our resources to find him and provide for his safe return,” Mathias said.
Mathias did not provide details on the soldier, the location where he was captured or the circumstances.
Prayers are with him and for his quick rescue because I damn well know he is not being treated like a Gitmo prisoner.
UPDATE
As Mata noted in the comments unconfirmed reports are that the soldier wandered off the base which is just wacky. No way this happens accidentally since you need to be cleared to go off base in war zone:
Military officials in Afghanistan, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the situation, said the missing soldier appears to have walked off his base into an unsecured area.
A U.S. official in Afghanistan said the soldier’s absence was discovered when he did not show up for morning formation. It is highly unusual for a U.S. soldier to leave a military base unaccompanied by other American troops.
~~~“Our leaders have not decided on the fate of this soldier.” the AFP quoted the Haqqani commander, identified only as Bahram, as saying. “They will decide on his fate and soon we will present video tapes of the coalition soldier and our demand to media.”
While the AFP report quoted the Haqqani commander as saying that the soldier was captured with three Afghan “guards,” the U.S. official said the Afghanis who reportedly were seized do not appear to have been soldiers.
Captured with three non-military Afghan’s? Just wacky.
Either way, the soldier is missing and our prayers are with him and his family
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I’m sorry to write this, Curt, but Islam does not keep infidels prisoner. If the soldier was captured while conscious, he was given the choice of convert or die. Without confirmation or direct knowledge, the missing soldier is probably already dead.
I’m hearing all kinds of confusing reports on this…
This AM, I believe it was, I heard a TV report that said he had left the base at a time, and under conditions he was not supposed to leave. His bizarre walkabout, leaving his base and command post alone, is also mentioned by Bill Roggio at Long War Journal, and the syndicated McClatchy article appearing in various US publications.
But also in that cable news report was an audio blurb that they said they thought he left with three ME men, while the print media reports no one saw him leave. I have seen no print media repeat this claim.
“Why leave at all?”, I think to myself . Especially not without another soldier and the knowledge of commanders. Or is there some truth to leaving with local civilians? Surely a soldier cannot be kidnapped from a base with other soldiers and not be noticed. Dang, hope not…
And, was he at his “command post”, and was he considered as deserting his post? i.e. was he on duty, or just got up in the dead of night for a stroll in enemy territory?
‘fusing….
Something is just too bizarre about this incident at the moment. Suspect there is a story at the heart of it that won’t be coming out anytime soon. I certainly hope he’s safe, I hope he didn’t just have a mental breakdown and take off in blind desperation, and I most certainly hope he wasn’t “changing sides” for his allegience.
ABC News reported the soldier’s gear – weapon, vest, pack, etc, – was left behind. Doesn’t sound like a kidnapping or capture. I think Talis would have taken his stuff.
Perhaps he snapped from fatigue?
However, with all the press speculating about it, don’t be surprised if some group claims to have gotten him, killed him, etc, just because they can at this moment.
Of course the possibility exists that as he wondered off base – regardless of the reason – he was snatched up and/or killed.
Indigo Red:”I’m sorry to write this, Curt, but Islam does not keep infidels prisoner.”
While I hear what you are saying, there have been numerous events in the media where they have kept them alive FOR SOME TIME for whatever reason (And yes it may have been to convert them OR it could have been that they were getting the media attention at the time). As I recall, they even released that one FEMALE prisoner.
So, death may not be immediate and there could still be time for a rescue.
Curt… another “da man!” here! Thanks for finding a substantiation of those three mysterious compadres in the “disappearance”! Been very busy, and glad you found a media report than mentions all the confusing data surrounding this soldier’s fate.
As I said… hope he is safe. Hope very much that a soldier cannot be kidnapped on a US base. And *very much* hope this soldier is not a defection.
Sounds like a lot of spinning from official reports? CYA’s Who knows. Maybe he was a young soldier who was induced by Afghani’s by offers of women? Whatever the reason… I hope all the best for him, but he dug his own grave. We cannot be all caught up in our underwear over one man.
Now it is time to focus on the Marine offensive. Time to kick some AQ and Taliban ass…
I blame George Bush!
If 9/11 hadn’t have happened, we never would’ve had to send American troops to an icky place like Afghanistan!
The military is being relatively close hold on this for the benefit of the Soldier, just like the hypocritical media kept David Rohde’s kidnapping secret for 8 months—for the individual’s welfare. As a result, there is a fair amount of speculation and it’s not clear which “source” has the most accurate facts.
From what I’ve found in my digging: the Soldier apparently left the base at the end of his duty day on Tuesday. Nothing I’ve seen clearly establishes the status of the Afghans he was supposedly captured with. They could have been civilian contractors, local citizens, or even Afghani security trainees.
The US military apparently didn’t realize he was missing until the next day when he was found not present. If he left his weapon and all his equipment, I’m astounded he was able to get off base, especially without other Soldiers with him. That implies an incredulous security oversight or lack of adequate force protection measures at this particular installation. That also leads me to ask what about his first-line leader and his fellow Soldiers? No one knew anything until the next day?
In any case, it seems pretty certain—AFP’s got a Taliban commander’s statement—the Soldier is now in Haqqani faction hands. This is the first US Soldier captured by the Taliban since 2002, so the propaganda and media benefits far outweigh outright chopping off his head. This will become an ever-increasing media frenzy as the Taliban and coalition forces start the brinksmanship dance over this Soldier’s future.
Sadly, as most people in the US relax and while away their everyday concerns over the Independence Day holiday weekend, this Soldier’s family must endure the anguish of whether or not their loved one is still alive or if they will ever see him again. This is, indeed, poignant reminder that freedom isn’t free.
Why did this young man leave his gear behind? that dosn’t sound right. A marine would not of done that. I have a son in the marines and he said your gun is your life and you will get in trouble for that. The army need to get tougher with their people. that is why the marines is always respected. I hope and pray to God that this young man is fine. and hope that they didn’t have the nerve to come on base and, why wasn’t he with another soldier? something dosn’t add up and why is he growing a beard? I hope this young man didnt snap! or was afraid, which we all are especially going there, you can’t evan trust the afgan. police or noone from that country and I told my son that. May god bless him and his family and bring this young man home safely….