Decorated Australian veteran loses his defamation appeal over killings in Afghanistan
- Ben Roberts-Smith, Australia's most decorated living war veteran, lost his appeal against a 2023 civil court ruling in Sydney on Friday.
- The appeal challenged a defamation judgment that found Roberts-Smith unlawfully killed four Afghan prisoners, after newspaper articles published in 2018 made war crime allegations.
- A panel of three federal judges upheld Justice Besanko’s 2023 decision, confirming that the allegations were proven substantially true under the civil standard and dismissing the appeal.
- The ruling stated Roberts-Smith killed four of six unlawfully killed Afghans, though he has not faced criminal charges, which require proof beyond reasonable doubt.
- Roberts-Smith plans to seek a High Court appeal, while calls emerge from his SAS peers to strip him of his Victoria Cross for gallantry in Afghanistan.
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One of Australia's Most Decorated Soldiers Loses the Legal Battle over War Crimes Charges While Serving in Afghanistan
One of Australia’s most decorated soldiers has lost a legal battle to overturn the findings accusing him of war crimes while serving in Afghanistan. This Friday, the country’s Federal Court has dismissed his appeal. Since 2018, Ben Roberts-Smith has been struggling to save his reputation. In that year, the press published that he had been involved in the murder of unarmed Afghan prisoners. Specifically, reports indicate that the man had kicked a…
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