The Afghan Files - Austrailian Special Forces

“Hundreds of pages of secret defence force documents leaked to the ABC give an unprecedented insight into the clandestine operations of Australia's elite special forces in Afghanistan, including incidents of troops killing unarmed men and children.” - http://www.abc.net.au

“The documents, many marked AUSTEO — Australian Eyes Only — suggest a growing unease at the highest levels of Defence about the culture of Australia's special forces as they prosecuted a bloody, secretive war against insurgents across a swathe of southern Afghanistan.” - http://www.abc.net.au

”deep divisions”

“Another document refers to a "desensitisation" and "drift in values" among elite Special Air Service soldiers serving in Afghanistan, while others allude to deep divisions between the two elite units which primarily comprise the special forces - the SAS based in Perth and 2 Commando Regiment based in Sydney.” - http://www.abc.net.au

”Willingness by officers to turn a blind eye...”

“One document from 2014 refers to ingrained "problems" within special forces, an "organisational culture" including a "warrior culture" and a willingness by officers to turn a blind eye to poor behaviour.” - http://www.abc.net.au

”shot dead insurgents, but also unarmed men and children.”

“A large proportion of the documents are reports on at least 10 incidents between 2009-2013 in which special forces troops shot dead insurgents, but also unarmed men and children. The Inspector General of the Australian Defence Force is investigating at least two of the incidents as part of its inquiry into the conduct in Afghanistan of special forces, which includes alleged unlawful killing.” - http://www.abc.net.au

”Afghan authorities were becoming increasingly agitated over Australians allegedly killing unarmed civilians.”

“A report into another 2013 incident in which an Afghan man riding a motorcycle was killed by Australian troops, and a female passenger possibly injured, states that Afghan authorities were becoming increasingly agitated over Australians allegedly killing unarmed civilians, and threatened to stop working with Australians.” - http://www.abc.net.au

”investigations only occurred because locals complained...”

“A helicopter attack killing boys and their donkeys, a detainee allegedly lunging for a knife shot dead and a boy mistakenly killed as he hid under blankets are all detailed in the documents. They show that on a number of occasions Defence investigations only occurred because locals complained to Afghan authorities, and those authorities demanded answers from the Australian forces, or because journalists or NGOs raised concerns.” - http://www.abc.net.au

”Inquiry found the Austrialian soldiers had acted within the rules of engagement...” While hunting mid -level target in 2009.

“Inquiry found the Australian soldiers had acted within the rules of engagement, yet admitted no weapons were found, and that a number of intelligence sources said the men were civilians, not insurgents. The inquiry officer also claimed that an alleged lack of protest by locals over the killings, and the fact the dead men supposedly did not behave like "uninvolved" Afghan civilians when the soldiers arrived, meant they were likely to have been "associates" of the Taliban member being targeted.” - http://www.abc.net.au

In 2012 “Australians were carrying out a "capture/kill" mission targeting a mid-level insurgent commander and bomb maker in the Deh Rafshan area of Uruzgan Province.”

“...a 13-year-old boy, drawing water from a well nearby, walked after them in order to convince them to stop. The Australian fired at the men again, and they finally stopped. When he approached the men he found the 13-year-old boy with a gunshot wound to neck and an exit wound through his mouth. No weapons were found, and the men were ultimately released. The boy survived.” - http://www.abc.net.au

And in 2013 in Spin Kecha village ASF were entering a compound and mistakenly shot a child. A payment was made to the family for the accident.

“While searching a compound as part of an operation targeting a high value Taliban target, special forces soldiers saw a man, later named as Bismillah Azadi, allegedly pointing a pistol at them. Bismillah was shot and killed by two special forces soldiers, but they were unaware of a child hidden in blankets near him. The child was later discovered with a single gunshot wound to the abdomen and within five minutes was pronounced dead. A payment to the child's family of $US1,500 was made.” - http://www.abc.net.au

”..outcomes of investigations are seldom made public.”

“On at least one of these occasions, the commanding officer of the Special Operations Task Group in Tarin Kowt refused to hand over evidence to ADFIS investigators without a warrant, leading to an ugly confrontation between officers from special forces and ADFIS investigators. Some of the incidents detailed below have been publicly acknowledged by Defence previously, usually in response to media reporting, but the outcomes of investigations are seldom made public.” - http://www.abc.net.au

This type of conduct is not new but, in 2016 they were just ”hearsay stories” so we'll see what they say this time.

“The Chief of Army, Lieutenant-General Angus Campbell, told Fairfax Media a "range of unsubstantiated, third-person, hearsay stories" warranted "deeper consideration, but independently". "For those, I have sought the assistance of the Inspector General of the ADF to consider the range and nature of those stories and to understand the basis of those stories from an independent point of view," he said.” - http://www.smh.com.au

I love our men and women in uniform. We can't become the enemy though. Killing innocence is a symptom of war.

War is obsolete,

- Citizen

Note: I didn't put in the “severed hands” story because war makes us do these things. Humans have a history of collecting souvenirs from their fallen enemy. This is still shocking to normal people because they hardly pick up a history book.

This is just a part of the leaked documents:

(Image Source)