Ben Roberts-Smith, Australia's most decorated living veteran, was granted bail Friday, 10 days after being charged with war crimes related to killings in Afghanistan. Judge Greg Grogin ruled in a Sydney court that the former Special Air Service Regiment corporal had established exceptional circumstances justifying his release from custody.

Roberts-Smith, 47, was arrested on April 7 and charged with five counts of war crime murder involving the deaths of five Afghans in Uruzgan province in 2009 and 2012. Under Australian law, war crime murder is defined as the intentional killing in armed conflict of a person not actively participating in hostilities, such as civilians, prisoners of war, or wounded soldiers.

Prosecutors opposed bail, arguing Roberts-Smith posed a flight risk and might interfere with witnesses and evidence. Prosecutor Simon Buchen told the court that Roberts-Smith had been "on the cusp of relocating overseas" and had made "advanced plans" to move to various international destinations without informing authorities when he became aware prosecutors were considering charges.

Roberts-Smith was awarded both the Victoria Cross and Medal of Gallantry for his Afghanistan service and is only the second Australian veteran of the Afghanistan campaign to face war crime charges. The charges stem from a 2020 military report that found evidence elite SAS and commando troops unlawfully killed 39 Afghan prisoners, farmers, and other noncombatants.

The allegations are not new to Roberts-Smith. In 2023, a civil court found similar war crimes allegations against him credible when rejecting his defamation claims against newspaper articles. However, while the civil case required proof on a balance of probabilities, criminal charges must be proven beyond reasonable doubt. Roberts-Smith faces a potential maximum sentence of life imprisonment on each conviction and has not yet entered pleas.