Australia strips medals from Afghanistan war commanders

Defence minister cancels awards of small number of officers over alleged war crimes committed on their watch.

Australia has moved to strip senior military officers of their distinguished service medals over alleged war crimes committed on their watch in Afghanistan.

The announcement on Thursday comes after the 2020 Brereton Report found credible evidence that Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel in Afghanistan were involved in the unlawful killing of 39 prisoners and civilians.

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles told parliament the decision was made in keeping with the report’s 143 recommendations, including a number related to “command accountability”.

“My decisions on this matter are consistent with the findings and recommendations of the Brereton Report. In accordance with obligations owed to individuals involved, including under the Privacy Act, I am prohibited from disclosing the details and outcomes,” Marles said.

While Marles did not name the officers who had been stripped of their awards or specify the number of those affected, local media reported that the move related to fewer than 10 personnel.

Marles also said that the Office of the Special Investigator was looking into the possibility of prosecuting some ADF personnel but those inquiries would “take years to complete”.

Marles said that while the alleged actions of about two dozen ADF personnel were a source of “national shame”, more than 26,000 Australians served in the war in Afghanistan.

“Bar the actions of a few, they undertook their service with professionalism, honour and integrity. They should be proud of their contribution and we are proud of them,” he said.

Major General Paul Brereton’s four-year inquiry did not find evidence that military top brass had knowledge of alleged war crimes.

The former judge, however, found that “troop, squadron and task group commanders bear moral command responsibility and accountability for what happened under their command and control”.

In March last year, former Special Air Service Regiment soldier Oliver Schulz was charged with murdering an Afghan man in 2012, becoming the first serving or former ADF member to be charged with a war crime-related murder.