Australian soldier charged with war crimes vows to clear his name

An Australian former soldier charged with committing war crimes in Afghanistan vowed on Sunday to clear his name, saying he had never “run from a fight” in his first public comments since his arrest. “For the past 10 years, my family and I have been subject to a campaign to convince Australians that I’ve acted improperly in my service in Afghanistan,” Ben Roberts-Smith told journalists at the Gold Coast. “I categorically deny all of these allegations, and while I would have preferred these charges not be brought, I will be taking this opportunity to finally clear my name,” he said.

Roberts-Smith was granted bail on Friday after a high-profile arrest on five counts of “war crime — murder”. Police alleged he was complicit in a string of unlawful killings between 2009 and 2012. The Victoria Cross recipient has denied all the charges.

He was released from prison on Friday evening after 10 days behind bars. “I’m proud of my service in Afghanistan. While I was there, I always acted within my values,” he said on Sunday.

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Australia’s most decorated living soldier met Queen Elizabeth II, had his portrait hung at the Australian War Memorial and was honoured as the nation’s “father of the year”. But the war hero’s reputation was called into question in 2018, when a series of news reports linked him to the alleged murder of unarmed Afghan prisoners by Australian troops.

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