VC-winning veteran resigns after losing war crime case

AUSTRALIA’S most decorated living war veteran quit his job yesterday, with calls for him to be stripped of his Victoria Cross after a civil court ruled he unlawfully killed four Afghans.

Ben Roberts-Smith, who retired from Australia’s elite Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) a decade ago, on Thursday resigned as state manager for Seven West Media after losing a defamation suit against newspapers that had accused him of an array of war crimes.

He had been on leave since 2021 to focus on his court case, which was financed by Kerry Stokes, the company’s billionaire executive chairman.

“Ben has been on leave while the case was running and today has offered his resignation which we have accepted,” James Warburton, its chief executive, wrote in an email to staff. “We thank Ben for his commitment to Seven and wish him all the best.”

Mr Roberts-Smith, 44, has been fighting to salvage his reputation since 2018, when newspapers accused him of an array of war crimes, including culpability in six unlawful killings.

A judge dismissed the defamation claims on Thursday, finding the articles were substantially true. The judge also found Mr Roberts-Smith was responsible for four of the six unlawful deaths he had been accused of.

Justin Quill, a media lawyer, said Mr Roberts-Smith’s lawyers would have been shocked by the extent of his loss.

“Ultimately, there is a judge’s finding that he committed four murders and that’s about as bad as you could possibly get,” Mr Quill said. “I’d say even in his worst nightmares he didn’t expect yesterday to go quite as badly as that.”

Mr Roberts-Smith remains under police investigation for war crimes. In March, the former soldier became the first to be charged with a war crime from Australia’s 20-year campaign in Afghanistan.

Mr Roberts-Smith’s SAS colleagues are among those calling for him to become the first Australian Victoria Cross winner to be stripped of the highest award for gallantry in battle.

Mr Roberts-Smith won his VC for single-handedly saving the lives of his platoon by storming two Taliban machine gun nests during the battle of Tizak in 2010. The Australian government has refused to comment on the case.

Our Foreign Staff