Former ADF soldier Ben Roberts-Smith has been arrested at Sydney airport over war crimes.
The allegations relate to the murder of multiple civilians in Afghanistan from 2009 to 2012.
It is the second time a current or former ADF member has been arrested for war crimes over alleged actions in Afghanistan.
Roberts-Smith has not been directly named by the AFP, however his identity has been reported widely. He is expected to be charged later on Tuesday.
Background
In 2018, The Age, The Canberra Times and The Sydney Morning Herald published a series of articles about Roberts-Smith.
They alleged Roberts-Smith either ordered or personally carried out killings of prisoners in Afghanistan, in a manner constituting war crimes.
He was also alleged to have punched a woman in a Canberra hotel room.
Roberts-Smith sued the newspapers for defamation. A judge found the allegations were substantially true, and the High Court declined to hear Roberts-Smith’s appeal last year.
Arrest
On Tuesday morning, the AFP arrested a 47-year-old man at Sydney airport.
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They will charge him with the intentional murder and assistance to murder of civilians in 2009, 2010, and on three occasions in 2012, all in Afghanistan. The maximum sentence is life in prison.
While the AFP will not name the former soldier, multiple media outlets have confirmed Roberts-Smith’s identity. The man’s description and time served also matches with Roberts-Smith.
He will face a NSW court on Tuesday.
War crimes
There is no single document that contains a definitive list of war crimes. Instead, they are defined through a range of international laws, treaties, and conventions.
These include the Geneva Conventions, which set rules for how wars are fought and aim to protect people not taking part in combat, such as civilians and prisoners of war.
In 2016, the Government commissioned an inquiry into allegations of war crimes by soldiers in Afghanistan. The four-year inquiry found 23 incidents of alleged unlawful conduct.
Following the report, the Office of the Special Investigator (OSI) was set up in 2021 to look into these incidents and pursue potential criminal charges.
The OSI has initiated 53 investigations, 10 of which are still active.
In the 2025-26 Budget, the Government gave the OSI $57.5 million in funding.
Other than Roberts-Smith, only one investigation has led to a criminal charge, with a former SAS soldier due to face trial on a war crimes murder charge next year.
