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

BBC News - World Legal & JudicialNews ReportEN 3 min read 100% complete April 7, 2026 at 09:19 AM

Part of Story

Ben Roberts-Smith entitled to presumption of innocence but ‘none of us are above the law’, Andrew Hastie says

AI Summary

medium article 3 min

Australia's most-decorated living soldier, Ben Roberts-Smith, was arrested at Sydney airport and charged with war crimes allegedly committed in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2012. He faces charges including murder and aiding in murder, accused of killing unarmed detainees or ordering subordinates to do so. Roberts-Smith, a former SAS corporal, denies the allegations. The arrest follows a 2023 defamation judgment finding him responsible for the unlawful killings of several Afghans and the 2020 Brereton Report, which found credible evidence of Australian soldiers unlawfully killing 39 people in Afghanistan. The Office of the Special Investigator (OSI), established to investigate these claims, has only charged one other person so far. Roberts-Smith will face a bail hearing on Wednesday.

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Legal & Judicial

Primary framing

National Security

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Sensationalism

Factual

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Key Claims (5)

AI-Extracted

It will be alleged the victims were shot by the accused or shot by subordinate members of the ADF acting on the orders of the accused.

quote — Commissioner Krissy Barrett100% confidence

He faces one charge of the war crime of murder, one of jointly commissioning a murder, and three of aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring a murder.

factual — Australian Federal Police (AFP)100% confidence

In 2020, the Brereton Report found 'credible evidence' that elite Australian soldiers unlawfully killed 39 people in Afghanistan.

factual100% confidence

A defamation judgement in 2023 found the former corporal had killed several unarmed Afghans.

factual100% confidence

Australia's most-decorated living soldier has been charged over allegations he committed war crimes in Afghanistan.

factual100% confidence

Claims are automatically extracted and should be independently verified. Attribution indicates the stated source of the claim.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Sydney ×240% Federal Court 40% Krissy Barrett 40% Ross Barnett 40% Australian Defence Force (ADF) ×250% Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) 50% Brereton Report 50% Office of the Special Investigator (OSI) ×260% Australian Federal Police (AFP) 60% Australia ×370% Afghanistan ×370% Ben Roberts-Smith ×590%

Keywords

war crimes 100% ben roberts-smith 90% murder 90% afghanistan 80% australian defence force 70% office of the special investigator 60% brereton report 60% special air service regiment 60% unarmed detainees 50% defamation 50%