The NATO-led international military mission in Afghanistan has confirmed that the man in a Taliban video is a missing American soldier.
The video, released Friday, shows Pfc. Bowe Bergdahl, who was captured by the militants more than five months ago in eastern Afghanistan.
Bergdahl appears healthy in the video and doesn’t appear to have been abused. In it, he makes a lengthy verbal attack on the U.S. conduct of the war in Afghanistan and its relations with Muslims.
U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Gregory Smith condemned the video in a statement, saying Bergdahl had clearly been forced to read a prepared statement. Read Admiral Smith said releasing it on Christmas Day was an affront to Bergdahl’s family and also goes against Islam’s teachings.
