After retiring from the army in 2013, Roberts-Smith had done an MBA and traded his $120,000-a-year soldier’s pay packet for a $700,000 package as Queensland manager of the Seven Network.

Source: https://insidestory.org.au/unfriendly-fire/

Ex-soldier Ben Roberts-Smith has agreed to hand over $910,000 in security to continue his defamation appeal over a series of news reports.

Source: https://citynews.com.au/2023/and-once-again-youre-welcome-canberra/

Last Friday Justice Anthony Besanko, after a year-long trial, found that the major allegations made by the papers – that Roberts-Smith is a murderer, a criminal and a bully – were proven to the civil standard of the balance of probabilities.

Source: https://www.observerxtra.com/australias-take-on-war-crimes-and-justice/

More generally, the incidents for which Roberts-Smith received commendations, and for which he stands accused of war crimes, were interlinked.

Source: http://southasiajournal.net/more-information-that-australias-war-crimes-in-afghanistan-were-covered-up/

Roberts-Smith, faced with relentless heavy machine gun fire, killed three insurgents with little regard for his own safety.

Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-global/how-australias-most-decorated-soldier-committed-war-crimes-8642010/

The broadcaster had used the occasion to praise VC recipient Ben Roberts-Smith as 'an outstanding Australian' and predicted 'they will never, ever find anything against him'.

Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12839789/Alan-Jones-mates-know-favourite-saying-pick-stick-decision-time-weird-wonderful-inner-circle-butlers-billionaires-talented-boys.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490

The court also found Roberts-Smith was complicit in the murder of Afghan farmer Ali Jan at Darwan in 2012.

Source: https://www.9news.com.au/national/ben-roberts-smith-defamation-verdict-over-alleged-war-crimes-to-be-delivered-today/209ac665-d67b-4a98-bd9d-390f74077009

The defence has argued that soldiers who gave evidence against Roberts-Smith were gossips, motivated by greed and jealousy.

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/6/1/australia-braces-for-judgement-in-war-crimes-defamation-case

Victoria Cross winner Ben Roberts-Smith during his days in Afghanistan.

Source: https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/2023/06/02/roberts-smith-war-crimes-afghanistan/

Yet as the of the judgment reveals, the Roberts-Smith case underscores the enduring significance of truth for public interest journalism and also the as a defamation defence, despite the fact that it is costly, complex and difficult to prove.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/jun/04/i-was-teaching-a-class-on-freedom-of-speech-when-ben-roberts-smiths-defamation-verdict-was-handed-down