Australia leadership left red-faced as report says elite troops unlawfully killed 39 Afghans over 'blood lust'
Australia has faced a major embarrassment after a report has revealed about its elite forces allegedly murdering 39 civilians and prisoners in Afghanistan in an environment where “blood lust” and “competition killings” were more or a norm. On Thursday, November 19, Gen Angus Campbell, chief of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), slammed the incident and conceded a “warrior culture” was rampant among some members of Australia’s special forces serving in the war-ravaged Asian nation.
The Brereton report, which looked into alleged war crimes by Australian special forces in Afghanistan, found reliable evidence that Australian Special Air Service (SAS) soldiers were involved in the unlawful killings of the Afghan civilians. The alleged incidents have been called as “disgraceful and profound betrayal of the Australian defence force” and showed evidence that junior soldiers were forced to kill prisoners to register their first kill in a process called "blooding". Gen Campbell also said at the time of the report’s release that the prevalent culture in the SAS and 2nd Commando regiment is toxically competitive and that it was a “failure of unit and high command”, The Guardian reported.
It was in March 2016 that a probe was launched by the Australian Defense Force under the leadership of Maj Gen Paul Brereton to look into charges that Australian special forces flouted the law of armed conflict in Afghanistan between 2005 and 2016. The inquiry alleged that some patrol commanders, treated as “demigods”, wanted the junior soldiers to kill the prisoners. The report also presented what it called a “credible information” that weapons and hand-held radio devices were sometimes allegedly placed by a body to give the impression that the person had been killed during action. The report also added that none of the 39 alleged killings took place in a battle situation and those who died were either non-combatants or had given up weapons.
Gen Campbell apologized to Afghan people
Gen Campbell made a sincere and unreserved apology to the people of Afghanistan over the allegations made in the report. “It would have devastated the lives of Afghan families and communities, causing immeasurable pain and suffering," he said, CNN reported. The ADF has recommended that the Australian Federal Police investigating 19 people from the Australian Special Forces over 36 alleged war crimes, including murder and cruel treatment of non-combatants in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2013, the CNN report said, adding Campbell conceded that he had accepted all of the inquiry’s 140-plus recommendations.
Australia invoked the ANZUS Treaty to back America’s anti-terror efforts following the 9/11 attacks and its military personnel joined the “coalition of the willing”. Australia’s role in the Afghanistan War was divided into two phases — Operation Slipper (2001-14) following which the Afghan security forces took over the majority of the fighting — and the ongoing Operation Highroad, which started in 2015.
More than 26,000 Australian soldiers were deployed in Afghanistan during Operation Slipper and of them, 41 perished while fighting. According to the defense department website, there are still around 80 ADF personnel present in Afghanistan at the moment, mostly engaged in support and training work. According to Campbell, some of the soldiers accused of war crimes in the report were still in action in Afghanistan. He said that he has directed the chief of army to undertake a case-by-case review of the circumstances and the nature of that service and it will be done immediately. Hours before the sensational report was released, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison reached out to Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani over the alleged misconduct of Australian soldiers in Afghanistan, as Kabul said in a statement.