Midday Roundup: Bergdahl faces desertion charges

Desertion. Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl likely will be charged later this week with desertion, an Army official told NBC News. The official, who was not named, said the charges are based on evidence Bergdahl did more than wander away from his remote post in Afghanistan in 2009. His actions put his fellow soldiers at risk because they were in the middle of a combat zone, the official said. Bergdahl eventually was captured by the Haqqani terrorist network and spent five years in captivity before being freed in a prisoner swap last year. His fellow soldiers, who spent months looking for him, accused him of desertion, but the Army waited to make that claim until it completed its investigation. Although he could face prison, officials expect his time in captivity will be taken into consideration and he will be released from service with a “less than honorable discharge.”

Not so bad. Snowpocalypse 2015 failed to live up to its billing, largely missing New York and New Jersey, where officials ordered people to stay home and prepare for massive snow drifts and extensive power outages. By Tuesday morning, officials lifted travel bans, public transit service restarted, and commuters headed to work. But New England residents remained hunkered down, as the brunt of the nor’easter landed on the Massachusetts coast. Overnight, the storm dumped more than a foot of snow on parts of the state, and it is expected to continue snowing throughout the day in eastern Massachusetts, Rhode Island, eastern Connecticut, and eastern Long Island. Accumulation could top 2 feet. Although New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said he didn’t blame weather forecasters for the missed predictions, the nation’s airlines might not feel so generous. About 15 percent of flights—4,615—were canceled because of the storm. Many major airports have reopened, but it will take a while to get all of the planes and passengers back on track.

Tripoli terror. Terrorists claiming to have ties to ISIS stormed a luxury hotel in Libya this morning, killing at least one foreigner and injuring others. Initial reports said between three and five militants had taken Western hostages, but Libyan officials later said no hostages remained inside the hotel. The Corinthia is popular with visitors to Tripoli, Libya’s capital, but was largely empty at the time of the attack because Westerners are staying away from the country as two rival governments battle for control. On social media, the militants claimed the attack was in retaliation for the arrest of a Libyan al-Qaeda operative, Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai, also known as Abu Anas al-Libi, who was captured last year by U.S. commandos. He died in a New York hospital this month while awaiting trial for the bombings of American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998.

Threats and retreat. ISIS militants are threatening to kill a Japanese journalist and a Jordanian pilot if Jordan doesn’t release a female terrorist sentenced to death for her role in a 2005 attack that killed 60 people. The militants reportedly killed a second Japanese hostage several days ago after Japan refused to pay a $200 million ransom. Meanwhile, ISIS fighters are on the run along the Syrian border after Kurdish forces retook the town of Kobani and are pushing ahead with an offensive to reclaim surrounding villages. ISIS fought for control of Kobani for four months as residents fled into Turkey. Although they are free now to return, they won’t have much to come home to, according to Kurdish officials. The militants destroyed most of the town, including the water, electrical, and sewer systems. Kurdish officials are calling on international help to rebuild.

Remembering. Today marks the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the concentration camp where more than 1 million people died at the hands of the Nazi regime. Survivors gathered in Israel to recount stories, many of them kept hidden for years after World War II ended. “I put everything behind me; I just focused on building a business,” said Avraham Harshalom, 90, who came to Israel after the war to serve in the fledgling country’s air force. “Even my wife Rachel, who had been in Russia during the war, didn't know the details of what I had been through. Everyone was just focused on building, and I didn't want to be different.”