Australia’s most-decorated living soldier charged over alleged war crimes

Australia’s Most-Decorated Soldier Charged with War Crimes Allegations

In a surprising turn of events, the country’s top-decorated active soldier faces charges related to alleged war crimes in Afghanistan. Ben Roberts-Smith, a former Special Air Service (SAS) corporal and recipient of Australia’s highest military honor, was detained at Sydney airport on Tuesday and will stand trial for five counts of the war crime of murder. He will remain in custody overnight before appearing in court for a bail hearing on Wednesday.

Defamation Case Sparks Criminal Proceedings

In 2023, a defamation ruling established that Roberts-Smith had killed several unarmed Afghans. The 47-year-old insists he is innocent, describing the accusations as “egregious” and “spiteful.” The civil trial marked the first time a court examined claims of war crimes by Australian forces. However, the case has now escalated to criminal charges, with the Australian Federal Police (AFP) confirming the arrest.

“It will be alleged the victims were shot by the accused or by subordinates of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) in the presence of, and acting on the orders of, the accused,” said Commissioner Krissy Barrett.

Roberts-Smith’s legal team argued that the killings occurred legally during combat or did not happen at all. Despite this, a Federal Court judge previously ruled that he was involved in at least four murders, a decision upheld on appeal. The judge, Anthony Besanko, found that Roberts-Smith had ordered two unarmed men to be shot in an effort to “blood” inexperienced soldiers. He was also linked to the death of a handcuffed farmer, who was pushed off a cliff, and a Taliban fighter whose prosthetic leg was taken as a trophy and later used as a drinking vessel by troops.

Brereton Report and Investigation Challenges

In 2020, the Brereton Report identified “credible evidence” of 39 unlawful killings by elite Australian soldiers in Afghanistan. This led to the creation of the Office of the Special Investigator (OSI), a dedicated team tasked with examining these claims. To date, the OSI has charged only one other individual besides Roberts-Smith. Ross Barnett, the director of investigations, called the arrest a “significant step” under “challenging circumstances,” noting the team’s difficulty in accessing evidence from a war zone 9,000km away.

“We can’t go to that country, we don’t have access to the crime scenes… We don’t have photographs, site plans, measurements, the recovery of projectiles, blood spatter analysis… We don’t have access to the deceased,” Barnett added.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese remained noncommittal on the matter, stating that political involvement should be avoided until the court reaches its verdict. Meanwhile, Roberts-Smith’s reputation as a national hero was cemented in 2018 when he was awarded the Victoria Cross for single-handedly repelling Taliban attackers during a SAS mission. Since then, he has engaged in a high-profile legal fight spanning seven years, costing millions of dollars, and dubbed by some as Australia’s “trial of the century.”