Australia Strips Medals from Commanders Over Afghan War Crimes

Defence Minister Richard Marles announced the decision following a landmark inquiry into unlawful killings by Australian special forces.

The Brereton Report found credible evidence that Australian troops unlawfully killed 39 civilians and prisoners in Afghanistan between 2005 and 2016.
Several senior defence commanders have been stripped of their distinguished service medals, though the exact number remains undisclosed.
The decision is part of implementing 139 out of 143 recommendations from the Brereton Report, which also led to the establishment of an Office of the Special Investigator.
Opposition and veterans' groups have expressed mixed reactions, with some seeing it as necessary accountability and others as an unfair punishment.
No Australian veteran has been criminally convicted for war crimes in Afghanistan, though former SAS trooper Oliver Schulz has been charged, and other investigations are ongoing.