Hagel testifies Wednesday on Taliban prisoner swap

WASHINGTON: Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is telling Congress that Qatar officials negotiating the release of captured Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl told the US that "time was not on our side" and a leak about the exchange would end the deal.

Hagel says the decision to transfer five Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, detainees into Qatar´s hands in exchange for Bergdahl was a tough call for President Barack Obama. He says the five were "enemy belligerents" but had not been implicated in any attacks against the US.

He says Qatar has committed to adequate security measures that led him to decide the risks of the transfer were substantially mitigated.

Hagel is testifying before the House Armed Services Committee. Members of Congress from both parties have blasted the administration for not giving lawmakers advance notice of the detainee transfer.