Australia’s most-decorated living soldier charged with war crimes in Afghanistan

A man hailed as a hero is facing a trial for the murder of five unarmed civilians during the war in Afghanistan.

Ben Roberts-Smith, 47, a former Australian Defence Force member, was arrested at Sydney Airport and charged with five counts of war crimes.

He was deployed in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2012, and faces five counts of murder and war crimes for the killing of five people.

Roberts-Smith served six tours in Afghanistan between 2006 and 2012, before being lauded with several top military honours.

Australian Federal Police commissioner Krissy Barrett said: ‘It will be alleged the victims were not taking part in hostilities at the time of their alleged murder in Afghanistan.’

She added that the victims were initially detained, while unarmed, and were under the charge of Australian soldiers when they were murdered.

Roberts-Smith has denied all of the allegations, which first surfaced after an investigation in 2018.

In 2023, he quit his job after a civil court blamed him for unlawfully killing four people while he served in Afghanistan.

Now, the Australian Federal Police investigation into Roberts-Smith, which began in 2021, has led to his arrest.

Ross Barnett, director of investigations at the Office of the Special Investigator, which is assisting in the case, said the process has been complex.

‘We don’t have access to the crime scenes, we don’t have photographs, site plans, measurements, the recovery of projectiles, blood spatter analysis, all of those things we would normally get at a crime scene,’ he said.

Roberts-Smith is facing mounting calls to be stripped of his numerous awards during service, including the prestigious Victoria Cross.

He’s set to appear before a court for a bail hearing on Wednesday in New South Wales.

What is Roberts-Smith accused of?

Roberts-Smith is facing charges of war crimes and murder in Afghanistan while serving as an Australian soldier.

Anthony Besanko, a federal judge in the court of Australia, previously found on the balance of probabilities that he had taken part in at least four murders.

The court at the time heard that Roberts-Smith had ordered unarmed men in Afghanistan to be shot dead to ‘blood’ rookie soldiers on two occasions.

He was also found to have been involved in the deaths of a handcuffed farmer, whom he kicked off a cliff.

In another instance, he captured a Taliban fighter and used his prosthetic leg as a trophy and ‘drinking vessel’.

Roberts-Smith has denied any wrongdoing.

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