Australia sought advice from Canada on Afghan probe
The Australian judge examining alleged war crimes by that country’s special forces met with Canadian special forces brass last year to hear details about their probe into claims of wrongdoing by troops in Afghanistan.
Paul Brereton, a Supreme Court judge and major general, travelled to Ottawa in April 2017 with staff from the office of the Inspector General of the Australian Defence Force to discuss how Canada’s special forces handled allegations of wrongdoing by members of Joint Task Force 2 in Afghanistan.
Those allegations resulted in a Canadian military police investigation, dubbed Project Sand Trap, as well as a board of inquiry or BOI.
“Maj.-Gen. Brereton and IGADF representatives were briefed on (the) overview of the sequence of events that led to the Sand Trap investigations, BOI lessons learned, and cultural lessons learned,” Department of National Defence spokesman Dan Le Bouthillier confirmed to Postmedia.
Brereton did not meet with military police or Canadian Forces legal officials.
Project Sand Trap began in 2008 when Canada’s Joint Task Force 2 faced allegations from one of its own soldiers. The commando alleged during the Afghan war a JTF2 member gunned down an unarmed Afghan man who had raised his hands in surrender.
In addition, there were allegations Canadian special forces officers failed to report an Afghan’s execution at the hands of U.S. forces. The JTF2 soldier complained to Canadian officers about the execution, but was sent home to Canada the next day, according to reports.
The investigation concluded in 2011, with military police stating they determined that Canadian Forces members did not commit criminal acts. But they did uncover details about the execution of an Afghan by U.S. forces and that information was passed to American authorities, military sources told Postmedia. It is not known whether the U.S. investigated the claims further.
The board of inquiry report, which was released Sept. 5, 2018, revealed that allegations Canadian special forces violated rules about the use of force in Afghanistan were ignored or brushed aside, fuelling the perception among the commandos that their leaders were trying to cover up any problems.
Military police also considered laying charges against Canadian special forces members in relation to the failure to report the execution of the Afghan. The reason the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service did not follow through with charges was censored from the board of inquiry report.
Australia is investigating recent accusations from some special forces troops that a group of rogue soldiers in the Special Air Service Regiment executed an elderly Afghan prisoner and kept a running tally of the number of Afghans they killed. Members of Australian special forces are also alleged to have kept the prosthetic leg of a dead Afghan as a trophy and later used it as a beer tankard.
Media reports from Australia indicate the investigation has found as many as five unlawful killings were committed by special forces personnel. There have also been reports that at least one member of the SAS was involved in a bank robbery in Australia.
The findings of the inquiry are expected to be released by the end of the year. In a separate inquiry David Irvine, the former head of Australia’s intelligence service, is examining concerns raised by senior military officers that a culture of impunity was allowed to develop in the country’s special forces units.
New Zealand’s government also launched an inquiry earlier this year into allegations its special forces killed six civilians and injured 15 during what has been described as a “revenge attack” on two Afghan villages.
Le Bouthillier said that during the meeting in Ottawa, Brereton met with then-Brigadier-General Peter Dawe, who has since been named as head of Canadian special forces. Also in attendance were various Canadian special forces personnel.
In the Canadian case, when special forces commanders failed to investigate allegations of wrongdoing the JTF2 soldier took his concerns to the office of the Canadian Forces Ombudsman in 2008. That office immediately informed military police about the allegations and an investigation was started.