The Sword of Damocles hanging over Ben Roberts-Smith for a decade fell in spectacular fashion today, with news he had been arrested and charged with five counts of the war crime of murder.
The irony is that the defamation proceedings he brought against Nine Entertainment over claims he was involved in the deaths of unarmed civilians in Afghanistan could end up making the difference between a guilty and not guilty verdict.
In 2016, the inspector-general of the Australian Defence Force ordered an inquiry into the conduct of special forces soldiers, which was run by then NSW Court of Appeal judge Paul Brereton.
When Brereton delivered his report to the government in 2020, he recommended 19 soldiers be investigated by police for the “murder” of 39 prisoners and civilians.
