This is certainly a wait, hope and see kind of story, at least for those of us on the home front.
The U.S. commando missing in Afghanistan is being held by the Taliban who have decided to kill him, a purported spokesman for the group said Thursday, but offered no proof for the claim he has made earlier.
The commando is the last of a four-member U.S. Navy SEAL team missing for 10 days in Kunar province, near the Pakistani border. One of the men was rescued and the other two have been found dead.
About 300 troops and several aircraft are searching for the U.S. Navy SEAL in the rugged mountains in eastern Afghanistan, American military spokeswoman, Lt. Cindy Moore said.
“We hope he is not in harm’s way,†Ms. Moore said.
The Taliban spokesman, Mullah Latif Hakimi, has said previously that the Taliban are holding the commando, who has been missing in Afghanistan for 10 days. But his information has in the past frequently proven exaggerated or untrue, and his exact tie to the Taliban leadership cannot be independently verified.
“This American will never be forgiven. Definitely he will be killed,†Mr. Hakimi said. He said the group would release a video after the man’s death.
While we may be stuck fretting and wishing, I’m quite certain the troops in-country are doing all they reasonably can for this SEAL. However, should harm befall the American at the hand of captors, I look forward for a comparison of detainee treatment by Sen. Dick Durbin.
In all due seriousness to the matter at hand, my best wishes for this man and his family.