Australia strips medals from military commanders over Afghanistan war crime allegations

Associated Press

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australia’s Defense Minister Richard Marles says several serving and former military commanders have been stripped of medals over allegations of war crimes committed during the Afghanistan war. A war crime investigation had recommended holding commanders to account for alleged misconduct of Australian special forces between 2005 and 2016. The investigation found that around 25 Australian troops had been involved in the unlawful killings of 39 Afghans. Marles wrote to commanders of those troops about medals they had received for their service during the periods war crimes allegedly occurred. Speaking to Parliament on Thursday, Marles did not share details of how many people or their ranks.