Roberts-Smith Charged with War Crimes

0:00It's April 8th. Welcome to Global News today, powered by AI and connected worldwide. Ben Robert Smith, Australia's most decorated living soldier and a Victoria Cross recipient, is staying behind bars after his lawyers skipped a bail. Application on war crime charges. The 47-year-old was nabbed a Sydney airport on Tuesday, hit with five counts of murder tied to alleged killings in Afghanistan. This criminal push follows a huge defamation loss in 2023, where a judge ruled there was substantial truth to claims he killed unarmed. Afghans from 2009 to 2012, while in the Special Air Service Regiment, Robert Smith has always denied the accusations, calling them outrageous, and his team argued back then that any shootings were lawful combat actions, or didn't even happen. That civil case was the first time an Australian court dug into war crime allegations against our forces. Now in criminal court, the bar is higher, with charges including one straight-up murder,

1:00one joint murder, and three for aiding or ordering them, each, carrying a possible life sentence. The Australian federal police wrapped a deep probe, pinning the alleged orders on him, or subordinates acting in his presence. Officials stress this involves just a tiny slice of the defense force, not the proud majority. Robert Smith links up via video on April 17th, as the case ramps up toward trial.