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yesterday

War Crimes Whistleblower David McBride Awaits ACT Appeal Verdict

Tomorrow’s ACT Supreme Court decision will determine whether his jail term for leaking defence secrets remains in place; his legal team has signalled a potential High Court challenge

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Supporters of jailed whistleblower David McBride hold banners and signs outside the ACT Supreme Court. (AAP Image/Mick Tsikas)
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A man standing in a room looks to his side, with a serious and focused expression. Part of his face and the room is in shadow.

Overview

  • McBride faces a ruling on Wednesday over his appeal of a two-year, three-month sentence for obtaining and sharing classified defence documents
  • He admitted to taking 235 defence files, 207 classified as secret, which prompted reports of alleged Australian special forces war crimes in Afghanistan
  • A subsequent inquiry found credible information on 23 potential war crime incidents that resulted in the deaths of 39 Afghan civilians and prisoners between 2005 and 2016
  • ACT Justice David Mossop said McBride’s early guilty plea and mental health concerns were factored into his sentence but underscored the need to deter unauthorised disclosures
  • McBride’s legal team has warned of a High Court bid if the appeal is unsuccessful and human rights advocates have called for the prosecution to be dropped to protect whistleblowers