Up to 3,000 Australian soldiers could lose awards after damning report on Afghan war crimes

Up to 3,000 Australian soldiers could be deprived of praise amid the aftermath of a horrific report on Afghan war crimes released Thursday.

The report found evidence of 39 killings by Australian special forces, recommending that 19 soldiers be investigated by the Australian Federal Police.

He discovered evidence that high-ranking troops pressured the youths to murder Afghan civilians and achieve their first death as part of a perverse initiation ritual called “bloodshed.”

Australian Defense Minister Linda Reynolds received the report two weeks ago and said it made her feel “physically ill.”

“It was a very, very harrowing read,” he said. “It certainly does not represent the service of the majority of men and women who serve our nation with such distinction.

“It is distressing for everyone who had or still wears the uniform.

“But if you look at it another way, we have faced this. It does not represent our values ​​as a nation. It does not represent the values ​​of the Australian Defense Force, and we have to address it.

“But to address it, we have to be transparent and honest, which is what the Chief of the Defense Force did yesterday.”

A review of all individual awards given in Afghanistan has been initiated, and decisions will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

Up to 3,000 Australian soldiers who served with Special Forces in Afghanistan could now lose awards, a move that Defense Forces Chief General Angus Campbell acknowledged would be a “severe blow”.

“It will be done thoroughly. We have to make sure that whatever we do, we treat people with respect, we follow processes and we take care of it,” he told ABC Radio.

“It’s not about ignoring it or avoiding it. It’s about making sure we don’t cause further harm or distress that could otherwise arise in a very, very difficult situation. But we are determined to deal with it.”

A Meritorious Unit Citation awarded to the Special Operations Task Force for “outstanding and sustained service” has been revoked.

Campbell says the horrific details revealed in the Brereton Report speak of a “collective responsibility” and a “shameful and profound betrayal of the professional standards and expectations of the Australian Defense Force.”

He said it was appropriate to remove the accolades from the unit as a whole.

“People understand why it is necessary. These unit citations are rarely given and are given for the most meritorious service,” he said.

“With so many accusations and so many people coming to the investigation, it is difficult to see any way to support a claim to keep that appointment.”

Veterans Affairs Minister Darren Chester admitted Thursday was a “very dark day,” but said the accused soldiers deserved the presumption of innocence.

The accusations should not cloud the good work done by the vast majority of the nation’s service men and women, he said.

“We want to be careful as Australians today not to put everyone on trial. That we actually get a message across to our service men and women that we stand behind them because they stand behind us,” he told ABC.

Campbell will have his own revised Distinguished Service Cross.

He said that he personally “did not see” evidence of war crimes when he served in the Middle East, but accepted “there is a responsibility to know, to be curious, to understand what is going on in your organization.”

“That is the issue that is most painful for those who were in high-level command positions,” he said.

“What I saw, what I didn’t connect, what maybe I went through. I didn’t see these things, but I am left wondering what I missed and what could have been done differently.”

Although the report largely exonerated the higher echelons of the ADF, former Defense Minister Joel Fitzgibbon said the responsibility rests with the top.

“These people were put in the most difficult circumstances. They were waging a war against an enemy who does not play by the rules,” Fitzgibbon said.

“There is no excuse for the alleged actions, absolutely not, and they will pay a very high price for their alleged actions.

“But I think that the people who are in the chain of command, in the National Security Committee and the Cabinet, have to take some responsibility for what we are seeing here.”