WAR CRIMES CLAIMS ‘DISTRESSING’

DIGGERS FACE HAVING MEDALS STRIPPED

AUSTRALIAN soldiers face potential criminal charges and having their medals stripped after a damning report into the actions of some Special Forces operatives in Afghanistan. Prime Minister Scott Morrison yesterday announced a special investigator would be appointed to prepare briefs of evidence against Special Forces soldiers who may have committed war crimes while serving in Afghanistan from 2005 to 2016.

Herbert MP Phillip Thompson who deployed with Townsville’s 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment in 2009, said any allegations of misconduct were distressing for everyone but it was vital to ensure people were given a fair go to give their version of any allegations. “This cannot be a trial by media,’’ he said.

AUSTRALIAN soldiers face potential criminal charges and having their medals stripped after a damning report into the actions of some Special Forces operatives in Afghanistan.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison yesterday announced a special investigator would be appointed to prepare briefs of evidence against Special Forces soldiers who may have committed war crimes while serving in Afghanistan from 2005 to 2016.

Those found to have committed crimes will be referred to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions for potential prosecution.

The move follows a four-year investigation by the Inspector-general of the Australian Defence Force which identified 55 incidents of potential breaches of the Laws of Armed Conflict, including unlawful killings and cruel treatment of non-combatants.

Mr Morrison said some “very serious issues’’ had been raised regarding the conduct of some Special Forces soldiers, and that Australia needed to confront some “honest and brutal truths’’.

“This will be difficult and hard news for Australians, I can assure you, to hear,’’ he said. “It is going to be very difficult for our serving community and our veterans’ community.

“It is going to be difficult for all of us but what we are seeking to do as a government, I think what we have to do as a country, is to absorb this in a way that enables us to uphold the integrity of our justice system and uphold the integrity of our defence forces.’’

A senior lawyer or retired judge will be appointed to lead the Office of Special Investigator, which will be at arm’s length from the ADF and funded by the Department of Home Affairs.

It will operate under the auspices of the Australian Federal Police, under Australian law, and will use police and other experts as investigators. One name floated in Canberra to potentially head the office is former NSW senior police officer and international war crimes investigator Nick Kaldas.

The government also announced the establishment of a three-member Oversight Panel to ensure the ADF leadership acted sufficiently in response to recommendations contained in the IGADF report.

The report was handed to Chief of the Defence Force General Angus Campbell ( opposite page) last week and a redacted version will be made public in coming days.

Defence Minister Linda Reynolds said the report had identified “extremely serious matters’’.

“This started four years ago with a range of rumours and allegations that were circulating within Defence … which is why the now CDF referred this through to the IGADF,’’ she said, adding that “39,000 Australians have served in Afghanistan since 2001 and 26,000 of those in uniform’’.

Senator Reynolds said that “with a few exceptions’’ the majority of those who served had done so with great distinction. She left open the possibility of stripping medals from any decorated soldiers if they were found to have committed war crimes, saying in response to questions about the loss of medals: “In relation to any of the findings and recommendations in the Inspector-general’s report, the CDF is considering all of those options.

“There will be many options and many recommendations for his action and it would be my expectation that the CDF would consider each and every one of those recommendations, which may well include what you just said.’’

The Oversight Panel will report quarterly to Senator Reynolds and be led by Vivienne Thom, a former Inspector-general of Intelligence and Security. The other two members are Robert Cornall, a former Secretary of the Attorney-general’s Department, and Rufus Black, an ethicist and vice-chancellor of the University of Tasmania.

The only person publicly named as being under investigation by the Inspector-general, Australia’s most decorated living soldier Ben Roberts-smith, issued a statement last night.

“I welcome the announcement today by the Prime Minister,’’ he said.

THIS WILL BE DIFFICULT AND HARD NEWS FOR AUSTRALIANS, I CAN ASSURE YOU, TO HEAR PM SCOTT MORRISON