U.S. soldier flies to freedom after Afghan prisoner swap

U.S. Army Sergeant Bowe Berghdal is pictured in this undated handout photo provided by the U.S. Army and received by Reuters on May 31, 2014. REUTERS/U.S. Army/Handout via Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The sole American prisoner of war held in Afghanistan was flown to a U.S. military hospital in Germany on Sunday after being freed in a swap deal for five Taliban militants who were released from the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba.

Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl had been held for nearly five years and his release, following years of on-off negotiations, suddenly became possible after harder-line factions of the Afghan Taliban shifted course and agreed to back it, U.S. officials said.