Ben Roberts-Smith Gains Access to Secret War Crimes Evidence on September 02

Ben Roberts-Smith, a Victoria Cross recipient and former SAS soldier, will now see the complete evidence against him after a Sydney court approved 206 classified court orders on September 1. Roberts-Smith was arrested in April and charged with murdering or ordering the murders of five unarmed detainees during his deployment in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2012. Judge Susan Horan ruled the orders necessary for a fair trial, though prosecutors warned the classified material could cause further delays.

What the court orders allow

The 206 court orders under the National Security Information Act govern how classified material and evidence must be disclosed, stored, protected, handled and destroyed. Roberts-Smith previously could not access the full brief because of the sensitive nature of Australian Defence Force operations in Afghanistan. The commonwealth barrister Jennifer Single SC cited “a risk of prejudice to national security” in seeking the protections. Judge Horan approved the orders as necessary despite their length.

The charges and allegations

Roberts-Smith is accused of machine-gunning an Afghan prisoner named Mohammed Essa and ordering the execution of his son Ahmadullah. In August 2012 at Darwan village, he allegedly kicked a handcuffed prisoner named Ali Jan off a 10-metre cliff before ordering him dragged over a creek bed and shot. Two months later at Syahchow, prosecutors say he lined up two prisoners in a corn field and shot one of them with another soldier. He contests all charges.

Bail conditions and trial delays

The court varied Roberts-Smith’s bail to allow him to relocate to Queensland and live with family long-term, reporting to a nearby police station twice weekly instead of a NSW station. Crown prosecutor Julia Wang warned that accessing Australian Defence Force information and engaging people without security clearance could cause further delays. Roberts-Smith’s solicitor Karen Espiner confirmed her client agreed to how the classified documents would be handled. Roberts-Smith was absent from the media-packed courtroom on Tuesday.

Political support amid legal battles

A recent survey of One Nation voters found Roberts-Smith holds a 69 per cent popularity rating, second only to party leader Pauline Hanson at 95 per cent. He ranked higher than Barnaby Joyce at 62 per cent, US President Donald Trump at 42 per cent and Liberal leader Angus Taylor at 32 per cent. Of his supporters, 80 per cent were aged 65 and above and 77 per cent were former Liberal voters. Research director John Utting attributed his popularity to his Victoria Cross status, perceptions he is being targeted by hostile media, and his role as a “culture war proxy.”

Final Thoughts

Roberts-Smith now has access to the classified evidence needed for his trial to proceed fairly, though security restrictions may slow proceedings further. His case remains one of Australia’s most high-profile military accountability trials.

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