Former ADF soldier Ben Roberts-Smith has been granted bail following a court hearing in Sydney.
It comes after he was arrested at Sydney airport last week over alleged 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.
Background
In 2018, three Australian newspapers – The Age, The Canberra Times and The SMH – published a series of articles alleging Roberts-Smith had ordered or carried out unlawful killings of unarmed Afghan men during his time serving in Afghanistan.
Roberts-Smith sued the newspapers for defamation, denying the allegations.
A Federal Court judge found the war crimes allegations to be substantially true. Roberts-Smith appealed but lost, and the High Court later refused to hear a further appeal.
Arrest
On 7 April, the AFP arrested the 47-year-old and charged him with the intentional murder and assistance to murder of civilians between 2009 and 2012 in Afghanistan.
Your contribution ensures The Daily Aus can continue doing the work you love.
I want to give $10 monthly to help TDA keep doing the news.
Your details:
The charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison
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.
