A billboard calling for the release of U.S. Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, held for nearly five years by the Taliban after being captured in Afghanistan, is shown in this picture taken near Spokane, Washington on February 25, 2014
Washington:
The parents of freed US soldier Bowe Bergdahl reached out to their son Sunday with a tearful message of love and support as he begins to recover from five years in captivity in Afghanistan.
Bergdahl, the only US soldier detained in Afghanistan since war began in 2001, was released Saturday in exchange for the freeing of five senior Taliban figures held at Guantanamo Bay, in a dramatic deal brokered by Qatar.
"I love you, Bowe," Jani Bergdahl said at a televised press conference in Boise, Idaho, with her husband Bob by her side.
"Give yourself all of the time you need to recover and decompress. There is no hurry. You have your life ahead of you."
The Bergdahls have not spoken directly with their son since he was captured in eastern Afghanistan in June 2009.
The 28-year-old soldier was receiving treatment at the US military medical center in Landstuhl, Germany as part of the "reintegration process," the army said Sunday. It was unclear how long he would remain there.
"Bowe has been gone so long that it's going to be very difficult to come back," his father Bob said, adding that the couple were well aware of the challenges ahead.
"It's like a diver going deep on a dive and has to stay back up for recompression. If he comes up too fast, it could kill him."
Bob Bergdahl indicated Saturday that his son might be having difficulty speaking English, after nearly five years with his Pashto-speaking captors, who took him to various spots along the volatile Afghanistan-Pakistan border, according to militant sources.
Fighting back tears, he said directly to his son: "When you're ready to hear this and when you see this, I hope your English is coming back and I want you to know that I love you."
His wife Jani, again addressing her son, said she was "so looking forward" to a reunion after more than five years apart, including his deployment.
"Freedom is yours. I will see you soon, my beloved son," she said.
Bergdahl, the only US soldier detained in Afghanistan since war began in 2001, was released Saturday in exchange for the freeing of five senior Taliban figures held at Guantanamo Bay, in a dramatic deal brokered by Qatar.
"I love you, Bowe," Jani Bergdahl said at a televised press conference in Boise, Idaho, with her husband Bob by her side.
"Give yourself all of the time you need to recover and decompress. There is no hurry. You have your life ahead of you."
The Bergdahls have not spoken directly with their son since he was captured in eastern Afghanistan in June 2009.
The 28-year-old soldier was receiving treatment at the US military medical center in Landstuhl, Germany as part of the "reintegration process," the army said Sunday. It was unclear how long he would remain there.
"Bowe has been gone so long that it's going to be very difficult to come back," his father Bob said, adding that the couple were well aware of the challenges ahead.
"It's like a diver going deep on a dive and has to stay back up for recompression. If he comes up too fast, it could kill him."
Bob Bergdahl indicated Saturday that his son might be having difficulty speaking English, after nearly five years with his Pashto-speaking captors, who took him to various spots along the volatile Afghanistan-Pakistan border, according to militant sources.
Fighting back tears, he said directly to his son: "When you're ready to hear this and when you see this, I hope your English is coming back and I want you to know that I love you."
His wife Jani, again addressing her son, said she was "so looking forward" to a reunion after more than five years apart, including his deployment.
"Freedom is yours. I will see you soon, my beloved son," she said.
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