Bergdahl ‘looked good’ in return to U.S.

In Texas, medical care continues for ex-Taliban captive.

Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl “looked good” after arriving back in the United States and is working daily with health professionals, military officials said,

SAN ANTONIO — Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl “looked good” after arriving back in the United States and is working daily with health professionals after being held by the Taliban for five years in Afghanistan, military officials said Friday.

Bergdahl’s family has not joined him since he arrived at Brooke Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston early Friday.

Maj. Gen. Joseph P. DiSalvo said during a news conference Friday that Bergdahl was in stable condition, “looked good” and showed “good comportment” after being transported to Texas from an Army medical facility in Germany.

“The reintegration of Sgt. Bergdahl is comprehensive. There is no set timeline,” said DiSalvo, who will be in charge of that process.

Col. Bradley Poppen, an Army psychologist, said a soldier typically determines when to reunite with his or her family. Poppen declined to release further details, citing the family’s request for privacy.

Military officials declined to give details on what Bergdahl might remember about his capture or what he knows about the public uproar surrounding his capture and release.

A three-vehicle convoy greeted Bergdahl at Fort Sam Houston in the early hours of Friday. Officials said he was able to walk on his own and appeared “a little nervous,” as they said any sergeant would when greeted by a twostar general. In the short time he has been back on U.S. soil, Bergdahl has been on a bland diet and has shown a fondness for peanut butter, they said.

Bergdahl also arrived speaking English, though officials indicated his speech had been affected from being in captivity for so long.

“Overall, our assessment is that he did not have the opportunity the past five years to practice and speak his English,” said Col. Ronald Wool, who is in charge of Bergdahl’s medical care.

Army officials briefed the media at a golf course near Fort Sam Houston and said no reporters would be allowed onto the base or in the hospital.

Officials have kept a lid on details of Bergdahl’s condition out of concern that he not be rushed back into the spotlight.

The Idaho native was captured in Afghanistan in June 2009 and released by the Taliban on May 31 in a deal struck by the Obama administration in which five senior Taliban officials were released from detention at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Many have criticized the Obama administration for agreeing to release five Taliban prisoners in exchange for Bergdahl. Some of Bergdahl’s former Army colleagues have accused him of deserting his post.

Critics also have said the five Taliban members could return to the battlefield. Administration officials have told Congress that four of the five Taliban officials likely will rejoin the fight.