20/04/2026

MONDAY | APR 20, 2026

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War hero vows to clear his name o Ex-SAS corporal denies all charges

The soldier allegedly kicked an unarmed Afghan civilian off a cliff and ordered subordinates to shoot him, The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald reported. He was also said to have taken part in the machine-gunning of a man with a prosthetic limb, which he later used as a drinking vessel with other soldiers. Roberts-Smith has staunchly maintained his innocence throughout, launching legal action against the newspapers who aired the allegations. But his efforts to sue The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald for slander would backfire, with a judge finding in 2023 many of the journalists’ claims were “substantially true”. Such civil trials carry a lower burden of proof than the criminal proceedings Roberts-Smith now faces. Police have said they will allege the victims were not taking part in hostilities at the time of their deaths and were detained, unarmed and under the control of Australian forces when killed. Australia deployed 39,000 troops to Afghanistan over two decades as part of US and Nato led operations against the Taliban and other groups to consolidate their hold on the mineral rich country. – AFP

SYDNEY: A former Special Air Service (SAS) corporal charged with committing war crimes in Afghanistan vowed yesterday to clear his name, saying he had never “run from a fight” in his first public comments since his arrest. “For the past 10 years, my family and I have been subject to a campaign to convince Australians that I’ve acted improperly in my service in Afghanistan,” Ben Roberts-Smith told journalists in the Gold Coast. “I categorically deny all of these allegations, and while I would have preferred these charges not be brought, I will be taking this opportunity to finally clear my name,” he said. Roberts-Smith was granted bail on Friday after a high-profile arrest on five counts of “war crime – murder”. Police alleged he was complicit in a string of unlawful killings between 2009 and 2012. The Victoria Cross recipient has denied all the charges. He was released from prison on Friday evening after 10 days behind bars.

A street mural of Roberts-Smith in Melbourne by artist Jarrod Grech. – AFPPIC

But the war hero’s reputation was called into question in 2018, when a series of news reports linked him to the alleged murder of unarmed Afghan prisoners.

soldier met Queen Elizabeth II, had his portrait hung at the Australian War Museum and was even honoured as the nation’s “father of the year”.

“I’m proud of my service in Afghanistan. While I was there, I always acted within my values,” he said yesterday. Australia’s most decorated living

Peru presidential vote results delayed

German army presses recruitment drive COLOGNE: Wearing a gas mask, a young man performs a rapid series of push-ups, jumps and squats at the German military’s recruiting booth at FIBO, the world’s largest fitness expo, held here. To find new recruits, the armed forces must rely on the power of persuasion, and sees the FIBO fair – a celebration of bulging muscles and displays of sweaty stamina – as a natural venue to win the soldiers of tomorrow.

LIMA: Results from the first round of Peru’s presidential election will not be released until mid-May, an official said, after a chaotic vote leading to what appeared to be a tight race. “We expect to have the presidential results, which is what we need to determine the runoff candidates, by around mid-May,” said Yessica Clavijo, secretary general of the National Jury of Elections (JNE), Peru’s highest electoral justice authority, on radio broadcaster RPP. With 93.4% of ballots counted from last Sunday’s election, right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori was leading with 17%. The top two candidates go to a runoff election, and a close race has emerged for a spot in the next round between leftist Roberto Sanchez, who received 12% of the vote, and ultra conservative Rafael Lopez Aliaga, with 11.9%. The gap between the two increased slightly on Saturday to 13,600 votes. Clavijo attributed the slow vote count to the review of more than 15,000 challenged ballots, about 30% of which involve the presidential vote and the remainder related to legislative elections.

Lopez Aliaga, the former mayor of capital Lima, has emerged as the harshest critic of the vote’s delays. He has alleged fraud, without providing evidence, and called for the vote to be annulled. He called on supporters of his Popular Renewal Party to march today in protest. Sanchez, for his part, also criticised the vote, telling a press conference on Saturday: “These serious organisational issues must be investigated and there must be appropriate sanctions.” A record 35 candidates ran for president in the unstable Andean nation, where four of the last eight presidents were impeached by Congress. The election was marked by delays in the delivery of election materials that forced authorities to extend voting into Monday in parts of the capital Lima. The European Union’s election observer mission nonetheless gave the election a clean bill of health. On Friday, prosecutors raided a warehouse of the National Office of Electoral Processes, which organises the vote, and four officials have been reported to JNE for alleged crimes against the right to vote. – AFP

“The target group is right here ... we rely on young, athletic, motivated people to join the service,” said the 30-year-old lieutenant commanding the booth, who gave his name only as Peter. “We can approach them very effectively here.” Franz, a 31-year-old physiotherapist who declined to give his last name, set the day’s record in the army booth’s gas masked fitness challenge, working his way through 50 jumping jacks, 20 squats, 10 press-ups and five burpees in 46 seconds. Franz said he would be open to joining the army in coming years. “Being there to defend my country is definitely an option.” Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called

Visitors take part in a test session at the army booth at FIBO. – AFPPIC

boost the reserves to another 200,000. To achieve this, Berlin introduced a system this year to register 18-year-olds to identify potential new recruits but has refrained from bringing back mandatory military service, which was suspended in 2011. – AFP

for Germany to become Europe’s leading conventional military power, part of a broader rearmament push by European Nato allies to deter a hostile Russia. Berlin has committed to increase its troop strength to 260,000 soldiers by 2035, up from the current 185,000, and

Historian picked to write Queen Elizabeth biography LONDON: Britain’s royal family said yesterday that historian Anna Keay would write an official biography of Queen Elizabeth II, who died in September 2022 after over 70 years on the throne. job was a “profound honour”. She will have access to Elizabeth’s personal and official papers held in the Royal Archives, Buckingham Palace said. She will also be able to talk to members of the royal family and the queen’s friends and household staff.

King for entrusting me with this responsibility and for granting me access to her papers, and will do all I can to do justice to her life and work,” she said. Official royal biographies can sometimes reveal unexpected details. William Shawcross’s official biography of Elizabeth’s mother, the wife of George VI, revealed how she suffered from bowel cancer in her 60s but was successfully treated. – AFP

King Charles III had wanted a woman to write the definitive account of his mother’s life, according to British media. Keay, best known for her work chronicling Britain’s Republican period between 1649 and 1660, said receiving the

Keay described Elizabeth as “an extraordinary woman, whose life spanned a century of great change”. “I am deeply grateful to His Majesty The