A new investigation by Australia’s Department of Defence has found that special forces commanders were aware that their subordinates were “planting weapons on the bodies of Afghans to falsely portray them as fighters,” but failed to intervene to stop the unlawful practice.
اضافة اعلان
The report, prepared by the Inspector-General of the Australian Defence Force (IGADF) in 2021 but published this week, said there was “no indication that officers were particularly complicit in the misconduct.” However, it found it “strange that no effective action was taken given the seriousness of the matters alleged to have been committed by their subordinates.”
“There was a breakdown in the governance system for rules and procedures,” the report said, adding that “the tolerance of senior personnel toward blatant non-compliance sent a strong signal.”
Politico quoted senior Liberal Party member Andrew Hastie, a former Australian special forces officer who served in Afghanistan between 2010 and 2015 during the period covered by the report, as saying that based on his experience, “there are findings that ring true.”
Moral Responsibility
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Hastie described the IGADF report as “difficult reading.” He said there was a culture within his regiment that he believed contributed to unlawful conduct, stressing that the report did not deny that such behavior had occurred.
“It simply spreads accountability from the lowest ranks all the way to the top of the chain of command,” he said. “I think most Australians would welcome that, because they believe army officers have a moral responsibility for what happens under their command, particularly within their units.”
The latest IGADF report concluded that some special forces officers failed to intervene despite knowing that soldiers under their command were using “throwdowns” — planting weapons on Afghan bodies to falsely portray them as fighters who had been lawfully killed.
“Officers who had actual knowledge of misconduct in the theater of operations, including in particular the use of throwdowns to influence fraudulent reporting, or rumors of misconduct, did not take effective action to investigate and address these matters,” the report said.
The report also found that some commanders were “alert” to data showing an increase in the number of Afghans classified internally as “enemy combatants” being killed, despite the fact that Australian casualties and insurgent injuries did not show a corresponding pattern.
The Inspector-General concluded that the situation was exacerbated by “questionable and ambiguous command-and-control arrangements,” resulting in “a lack of effective oversight of operations on the ground.”
Brereton Inquiry
The Brereton Inquiry was launched following allegations that Australian forces had carried out unlawful killings during the war in Afghanistan. Its 2020 report led to the establishment of the Office of the Special Investigator to explore the possibility of criminal investigations.
The inquiry found “credible” evidence that elite Australian special forces personnel had committed 39 unlawful killings in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2013. It said senior commanders bore “moral” responsibility, rather than legal responsibility, for the conduct.
The Office of the Special Investigator has since charged two former Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) soldiers with war crimes involving murder. Both men deny the allegations.
In 2024, Defence Minister Richard Marles described the Brereton Inquiry as “evidence to the Australian people and the world that Australia holds itself accountable.” However, some Australian lawmakers argue that the inquiry failed to adequately address senior commanders’ responsibility for crimes committed by personnel under their command.
Under international law, senior commanders can bear criminal responsibility for failing to prevent war crimes committed by their subordinates when they knew, or should have known, that the crimes were being committed.
Source: Al-Qahera News
