A senior administration official tells CNN that the Pentagon may soon, perhaps even before Christmas, announce whether or not Army Sgt. Bowe Berghdahl will face a military court martial.
Administration sources tell CNN the Army will announce the “disposition” of a pending report on Bergdahl and whether the military should punish him under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
The entire comprehensive review of the Bergdahl case currently being undertaken by the Army is not expected to be released until later.
The long-awaited comprehensive review will explore what circumstances under which Bergdahl left his post in 2009 and ended up in enemy hands.
Headed by Army Brig. General Kenneth Dahl, the review was concluded in October, but it has gone through various approvals before its pending release. On November 20, Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby said “the work is complete, and it is now in review in staffing. And as you know in this building that can sometimes take a while, especially for major investigations like this.”
Bergdahl’s release was extremely controversial since he was essentially swapped for five Taliban prisoners without the legally required notice to Congress. Several members of his platoon and squadron were highly critical since they believed him to have deserted his post, risking and even costing American lives in the subsequent search and rescue attempts to save him.