A stain on Australia

sir – The Brereton Report into alleged illegal behaviour by Australian Special Forces in Afghanistan makes for sobering reading.

The apparently deliberate killing in cold blood of 39 Afghan prisoners and civilians goes well beyond even the excesses of Abu Ghraib and is a stain on the reputation of the Australian Armed Forces. It also does a great disservice to the many Australians who fought with courage and integrity.

In your report (November 20), Dr Philip Chilton says: “You can’t have special forces that are trained to be expert killers, in a way that regular soldiers aren’t, and expect them to do anything other than commit war crimes.” This is nonsense. The idea that the elite forces of a nation such as Australia can be “expected” to commit war crimes is corrosive – tantamount to letting them do so. Such things cannot be expected, even in war.

Special Forces must fight courageously and with huge skill in the most demanding circumstances. The nature of their duties means that many of their bravest engagements go unreported, but they can nevertheless be a source of pride. However, there can be no pride in gratuitous killing or mistreatment, especially if such behaviour is institutionalised.

After French paratroopers systematically tortured Algerians (many innocent) during the Algerian war of independence, French people turned their back on their army for decades; it was said that they “no longer recognised” themselves in it. I fear that history may be about to repeat itself in Australia.

Air Cdre John Thomas RAF (retd) President, International Society for Military Ethics in Europe

Pitney, Somerset