Somewhere within the bowels of Iran, American pastor Saeed Abedini continues to be imprisoned unjustly, simply because he wanted to bring the light of the Gospel to one of the darkest regimes on the planet. Only a regime of evil like Iran’s could be threatened by man who is in its country to build orphanages. President Obama had time to negotiate with the terrorist-supporting regime of Iran, but had no time to secure Mr. Abedini’s release as part of those negotiations.
So Mr. Abedini remains in the brutal Iranian prison system, where he recently spent two months in the hospital after being beaten, according to his wife. In May, his family “celebrated” Mr. Abedini’s second birthday since he was last a free man. His young children are still without their father.
But let’s cut the Obama regime some slack, shall we? After all, who has time to secure the release of a Christian pastor while you’re negotiating with the enemy to return five of their most vicious operatives in exchange for a military deserter? The liberal Daily Beast has an account about Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl from a former Army infantry officer who says he was listening on a radio in Afghanistan the night Bergdahl was reported missing.
He says, for five years, he and his fellow soldiers were commanded to remain silent about the disappearance and search for Sgt. Bergdahl out of fear for his safety. But now that Sgt. Bergdahl is free, he told the Daily Beast the following:
“I served in the same battalion and participated in attempts to retrieve him throughout the summer of 2009 … the truth is Bergdahl was a deserter, and soldiers from his own unit died trying to track him down … Bergdahl failed to show for morning roll call. The soldiers in his platoon discovered his rifle, helmet, body armor, and web gear in a neat stack. He had, however, taken his compass. His fellow soldiers later mentioned his stated desire to walk from Afghanistan to India … Make no mistake: Bergdahl did not ’lag behind on patrol’ as was cited in news reports at the time. There was no patrol that night. Bergdahl was relieved of guard duty, and instead of going to sleep, he fled the outpost on foot. He deserted.”
That’s not to say I’m not happy when any captive American is returned home, Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl included. But how is it possible that we’re willing to pay the price of returning monsters like the “Taliban Five” to secure a military deserter, but we use no leverage for Pastor Saeed Abedini when we had it? Just to put in perspective the five men released back into the wild by the Obama Regime, here are their brief bios:
Mullah Mohammad Fazi: Former Taliban army chief of staff. Wanted by the United Nations for war crimes, including the slaughter of thousands of Muslims. A top aide to the former commander of al Qaeda’s military presence in Afghanistan.
Mullah Norullah Noori: A top Taliban military commander who is also wanted by the U.N. for war crimes. He’s been fighting alongside al Qaeda since the 1990s.
Abdul Haq Wasiq: A top Taliban intelligence officer, he helped coordinate alliances with Islamists to fight alongside the Taliban and against the U.S. in Afghanistan.
Khairullah Khairkhwa: As the former governor of a key Afghan province, he carried out important missions for the infamous Mullah Omar, the spiritual head of the Taliban. Also a drug dealer suspected of personally overseeing Osama bin Laden’s training facilities.
Mohammed Nabi: A senior Taliban military official with ties to multiple terrorist organizations. Reportedly helped coordinate attacks on American forces with these groups.
Our government just agreed to release the very people that more than 2,000 of our soldiers gave their lives in Afghanistan to defeat in order to bring a deserter home. This might be the worst deal cut by the Obama regime since its last one.
Under Obama’s leadership, the Muslim Brotherhood grows in influence, while the American dream declines. The families of four dead Americans at Benghazi have yet to receive justice, while Susan “It wasn’t a terrorist attack” Rice gets a promotion for lying about it on national television. Vladimir Putin and Russia’s stature are on the rise, while American dominance erodes.
The Obama era will prove history right again. Those who most frequently use terms like “fairness” and “justice” in their rhetoric always turn out to be those to be most feared. For their very actions prove time and time again they have absolutely no idea what those words really mean.
Meanwhile, the men who plotted and schemed to kill Americans and innocents in their own country are released, and Mr. Abedini remains in an Iranian prison.
(Steve Deace is a nationally-syndicated talk show host and the author of “Rules for Patriots: How Conservatives Can Win Again.” You can follow him on Twitter @SteveDeaceShow.)
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