Ben Roberts-Smith denies war crimes allegations in media interview

Former SAS soldier Ben Roberts-Smith has denied accusations of committing war crimes during his deployment in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2012. In a 150-minute interview with 2GB’s Ben Fordham, Roberts-Smith explicitly rejected claims that he murdered or ordered the murder of unarmed detainees.

During the interview, Roberts-Smith stated, “I didn’t bloody murder anyone,” and denied seeing anyone else shoot prisoners. He also addressed specific allegations regarding the treatment of a deceased Afghan man, denying that he drank from the man's prosthetic leg, though he noted that military dark humour is often misconstrued.

Roberts-Smith is currently out on bail as he prepares to face five counts of war crimes murder charges. These charges follow a Federal Court defamation ruling in which a judge found him responsible for several killings, including the machine-gunning of an unarmed prisoner. The media appearance is part of a broader publicity campaign that includes the launch of a new clothing line.