Australia's most-decorated soldier vows to fight war crime charges
Ben Roberts-Smith has given his first statement since he was charged with five counts of the war crime of murder last week.
AI Summary
Australia's most-decorated living soldier Ben Roberts-Smith has publicly denied all charges after being accused of five counts of war crime murder involving unarmed Afghan detainees between 2009 and 2012. The Victoria Cross recipient, who was arrested at Sydney airport and released on bail, said he would use this as an opportunity to "finally clear his name" and stated he always acted within his training and rules of engagement during his service in Afghanistan. The criminal charges follow a 2023 civil defamation case where a judge found "substantial truth" to some murder allegations against Roberts-Smith that were originally published by Nine newspapers.