Australia’s Afghanistan War Crimes Report Includes Evidence of 39 Murders by Special Forces

Report by the Chief of the Defence Force

A culture of secrecy, fabrication and deceit has cast a heavy shadow over the legacy of the Australian special forces deployment in Afghanistan, with a landmark inquiry recommending 19 soldiers be investigated by police for the “murder” of 39 prisoners and civilians, and the cruel treatment of two others.

The long-running probe found “credible information” that 25 current or former Australian Defence Force personnel were involved in the serious crimes, either carrying out the offences or at least being “accessories” to the incidents.

The report recommends a total of 36 incidents be referred to the Australian Federal Police (AFP) for criminal investigation.

Even before these matters end up in court, the Inspector-General of the Australian Defence Force (IGADF) believes the Federal Government should pay compensation to the families of victims in Afghanistan.

The heavily redacted findings of Major General Paul Brereton’s investigation, which took four and a half years to complete, were released in Canberra on Thursday by ADF Chief Angus Campbell.

General Campbell offered an apology for “any wrongdoing by Australian soldiers”, predominately the actions of some within the elite SAS.

“It is alleged that some patrols took the law into their own hands, rules were broken, stories concocted, lies told and prisoners killed,” he said.

Major General Brereton said none of the incidents being referred to the AFP could be discounted as “disputable decisions made under pressure in the heat of battle”.

“The cases in which it has been found that there is credible information of a war crime are ones where it was, or should have been, plain that the person killed was a non-combatant,” he said.

Soldiers told to kill prisoners in practice known as ‘blooding’

The inquiry said junior soldiers were often required by their patrol commanders to shoot prisoners to get their first kill.

This was a practice known as “blooding”.

5 Comments
  1. jm74 says

    This crime should come under the jurisdiction of the Hague; not Australia who will just shove it under the carpet.

  2. Le Ruse says

    Don’t worry ?? If Scotti disband the SAS they will be employed immediately by Danny Boy in to the Vic Police …

  3. ke4ram says

    Moral Authority…. (in war?) laughing my head off. You gotta be kidding.

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  4. itchyvet says

    I grew up in an Australia that was subservient to the Brits, people everywhere thought the sun shone and set out of the Anus of the British empire and many aspiring Officials had wet dreams of obtaining an award from the crown for services rendered. Being born German, singled me out for many racist attacks never mind I was only a 6 year old kid. I was always told how evil the Germans were and how Holy and Good the Brits were, who never did anything wrong, they were just so perfect. As I grew up, I set out to investigate whether those claims had any validity, part of that ensured I sign on the the Australian military and do a stint in Vietnam. Boy Oh Boy, was I due for a rude awakening. Within 4 weeks in country, I discovered everything I had ever been told about how the World worked, and the parts the Brits played in that, was WRONG. That the OPPOSITE was in fact the reality. Australia has always had major issues with it’s military, (ever since it’s inception, it has always involved it’self in other people’s wars starting with the Boer war,) i(incidently where the Brits developed the first concentration camps to lock up women and children to watch them die) and IMHO has encouraged some of that behaviour which it could then use to serve it’s own purposes. Take note of the FACT, these current events were publicly released FOUR years ago, resulting in the raid of television station premises, as well as the private premises of the reporters, and all their electronic equipment confiscated with the reporters being charged for disclosing secrets. That reporter still has that charge hanging over his head. So our Government KNEW a long time back of what went on, and tried desperately to keep the lid on, allowing the perpetrators to get off scott free with murder. When it is the Government who are the biggest criminals for breaching the Geneva Convention to which they are signatory to, by waging war against an innocent nation. Our P,M. who sent the troops off to this war, BEFORE parliament had even discussed the issue, is the biggest war criminal, and needs to stand charged beside the SAS murders in the dock, because without his say so, NONE of this could ever have occurred.

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