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The Australian federal police wrote to the decorated special forces veteran Ben Roberts-Smith to tell him it had information, including eyewitness accounts, implicating him in alleged war crimes, a court has heard.

Roberts-Smith is currently suing the Sydney Morning Herald and the Age newspapers for defamation over a series of reports suggesting he committed war crimes in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2012.

One of the allegations made by the newspapers was that Roberts-Smith kicked a bound Afghan villager named Ali Jan off the edge of a small cliff into a dry creek bed during an SAS-led mission to the village of Darwan in September 2012.

Ali Jan was then allegedly shot.

Those reports were vehemently denied and labelled defamatory by Roberts-Smith, a recipient of the Victoria Cross, Australias highest military honour, because they portrayed him as someone who broke the moral and legal rules of military engagement. He has previously rejected the allegations of misconduct as malicious and deeply troubling.

As Roberts-Smiths defamation case proceeds through the federal court, a separate, long-running, independent inquiry into alleged Afghanistan war crimes is being conducted by the inspector general of the Australian Defence Force through the former major general and judge Paul Brereton.

An AFP investigation into the allegations was also commenced in mid-2018, following a referral from the then chief of defence force Mark Binskin.

The court heard on Tuesday that police were treating Roberts-Smith as a suspect.

Sandy Dawson SC, acting for the newspapers, told the court that the AFP had written to Roberts-Smiths lawyer in December inviting him to give an interview, saying it had eyewitness accounts that conflicted with his account of the Darwan village operation.

On page two of the letter, Mr Roberts-Smith is told through his lawyer that the AFP has obtained contemporaneous ADF reporting and associated documentation in relation to this ADF [Special Operations Task Group] operation, Dawson said. The AFP has conducted inquiries in Afghanistan and obtained statements from a number of current and former ADF personnel.

He is also told, your honour, that the basis for the AFPs conclusion as to suspicion of Mr Roberts-Smiths involvement is predicated on the fact that Mr Roberts-Smith has contended that Ali Jan was a spotter and was therefore legitimately killed, whereas the information in the possession of the AFP, which includes eyewitness accounts to the contrary, implicates Mr Roberts-Smith in the conduct which is alleged, namely the two war crimes I have referred to.

Details of that letter have not been revealed publicly until now.

The court heard Roberts-Smith has participated in an interview with the AFP.

The AFP was preparing to release about 320 documents to Dawson and his legal team as part of the defamation case, the court heard.

The hearing on Tuesday was held because the IGADF is currently resisting an attempt by lawyers for the Sydney Morning Herald and the Age to gain access to documents it holds.

The newspapers are seeking IGADF documents to help bolster their defence of truth, including any IGADF notice issued to Roberts-Smith that he is a person potentially affected by its inquiry.

But the IGADF, represented by Anna Mitchelmore SC, has made a claim of public interest immunity over the documents, arguing their disclosure will do real harm.

Mitchelmore said the inquiry has so far been conducted completely in private and is governed by a comprehensive range of suppression orders.

She said the results of the inquiry may never be released publicly by the assistant IGADF.

When it was initially directed, the inquiry was mandated to be a private inquiry and since that time the assistant IGADF has continued to conduct it as a private inquiry, she said.

The results of the inquiry may never be known to the public or may not be known to the public for some time, either in whole or in part.

But Dawson said that submission was a distraction and that the court should not assume the report will not be released.

He said the process dictated that the Brereton report would be provided by the IGADF to the defence force chief Angus Campbell. Campbell would then, in consultation with government, decide whether the report was released.

Its more likely, we would respectfully submit, that major general Brereton has decided to leave the question of whether there should be public release of the report or any of it to the inspector general or to the chief of the defence force, he said.

Dawson noted that the defence minister was already on record as saying part of the report would be released.

We havent burdened your honour with this evidence but the minister is on record saying that the minister intends to release at least part of the report, given the extraordinary public interest in its subject matter, he said.

Now your honour doesnt have any evidence from the inspector general or from the chief of the defence force as to their intentions, let alone from the minister as to the ministers intention about releasing the report.

Your honour is only told that major general Brereton does not intend to make that decision, which it might be thought is a perfectly appropriate position for him to take given the extraordinary public interest in the matters being investigated.

Dawson said it was wrong to equate any release of the IGADF documents to the newspapers legal team with a release to the broader public.

He said the defence was constrained by strict requirements on how it could deal with such material, which would prevent sensitive information being made public.

That is an erroneous way to approach the question, we would respectfully say, Dawson said.

The court heard the IGADF inquiry is in a very real sense an ongoing inquiry. It was expected the inquiry might conclude within months, but that was not a certainty.

Not everyone who is to be issued with a potentially affected person notice, or is likely to be issued with one, has been given such a notice, the court heard.

The report would be provided to the chief of the defence force, who is able to make a decision on whether to release the report publicly in consultation with the IGADF, the court heard.

Justice Craig Colvin has reserved his decision on the public interest immunity claim and will hand down judgment at a later date.

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Australian police told Ben Roberts-Smith they had witnesses to alleged Afghanistan war crimes, court hears - The Guardian

Sikh refugees from Afghanistan hold placards as they demand security of their families and religious places in Pakistan and Afghanistan during a demonstration in the northern Indian state of Amritsar on August 27, 2020.Photo courtesy of Narinder Nanu/AFP

Since he was a child, 60-year-old Nidan Singh Sachdeva has never missed a single Saavan mela, an annual religious gathering celebrated by the Sikh community in Afghanistans Paktya province to mark the monsoon season.

The dry mountainous terrains of Afghanistan do not experience monsoons, but these celebrations are a reminder of the minority community's faith.

On June 22 this year, Sachdeva was at Gurudwara Tala Sahib, a 400-year-old temple in Paktya for the Saavan mela festivities when local Taliban insurgents kidnapped him.Sachdevas cousin, Charan Singh, believes that a land dispute led to the abduction.

The land surrounding the temple belonged to the Sikhs for centuries, but was illegally captured by some local strongmen. We have been fighting this case for a few years, Singh told VICE News.

Sachdeva, born and raised Sikh in Afghanistans Khost province, returned to his family on July 19, but the ordeal made them leave the country. Afghanistan is predominantly a Muslim country.

Sachdeva belongs to the quickly disappearing minority that was 200,000-strong before the start of the Afghan conflict in 1979.

Afghanistans had a vibrant diversity including Sikhs, Hindus and Jews, before the start of the conflict, Inderjeet Singh, author of the book Afghan Hindus and Sikhs told VICE News. These are Afghans who speak local languages and share cultural similarities with their Muslim counterparts.

Afghan Sikhs and Hindus were known to have largely worked in trade and financial sector. Many were involved in money-lending, informal banking and trading of spices, herbs and medicines.

After decades of war and targeted persecution from the extremist Taliban regime, they have been leaving their homeland searching for asylums.

As of 2017, rights activists estimated that there were about 3,000 Hindus and Sikhs left in Afghanistan. As violence against the minority group increased, these figures further dwindled. Last year, I was informed that there were about 800 to 900 remaining, but those who have seen the most recent list [population break-up] say that there are only 650 [Sikh and Hindus] left, said Inderjeet Singh.

The Sachdevas, a family of five, relocated to New Delhi, the capital of India last month, where they now live in a Sikh temple. They sold the family shop to a local in Afghanistan.

We have no idea what the future will be like. We are in the process of figuring out, Charan Singh told VICE News from New Delhi over the phone.

A brutal attack, claimed by the Islamic State insurgency earlier this year on a 400-year-old Gurudwara in Kabul claimed nearly 25 lives, triggered a fresh exodus of minorities. Every Hindu and Sikh family has had at least one casualty of violence in the past five years, said Tanweer Singh Khalsa, who left Afghanistan in 2019 .

With the help of the Indian government and several Sikh associations and donors, Khalsa has been facilitating the exit of the last remaining Sikhs and Hindus. A country is like a mother, but having faced so much violence and hate, we are left with no other option, he said.

Khalsas brother was murdered by the gunmen last year. Khalsas family could trace the corpse of his brother two months after police buried him in the communal graveyard. The body was exhumed so the family could identify him.

We couldnt give him a proper funeral for two months, until we were able to trace his body. It was the most traumatic and hurtful experience of my life, said Khalsa.

Around 200 people have left for Delhi in the last three weeks. Khalsa expects another 300 to make the journey in September.

Meanwhile, the absence of an entire community can be strongly felt in Kabuls markets. Hundreds of familiar faces with large, colorful turbans have gradually disappeared from the shops selling herbal medicines and spices in the Asmayee area of Kabul, believed to be named after a Hindu temple.

After the last attack, the majority of the sardars [sikh men] who owned businesses here left the country. I am also taking care of this spices and herbs shop for Jaktar Singh who may be leaving soon, said 32-year-old Hamid.

When Hamid was seven, Jaktar Singh started mentoring him and eventually, they became business partners.

Jatkar Singh treated me like his son. It didnt matter to him that I was a Muslim and he a Sikh. It pains me to see them leaving, he said.

As they depart, the community also worries about the upkeep and care of their historical structures. There are over 60 temples and Gurudwaras in Afghanistan, apart from historical sites that need to be preserved, Khalsa said.

In the end, we just hope our Afghan brothers will keep our history and heritage safe till we can return, Khalsa said.

Follow Ruchi Kumar on Twitter

Excerpt from:
Heres Why Sikh and Hindu Minorities are Leaving Afghanistan - VICE

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an unprecedented health, economic and social shock. In Afghanistan, this has affected all facets of modern life, including shutting downeducation institutions across the country in mid-March.

As part of lockdown measures, the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) sector saw the closure of 300 TVET schools and institutes. Workplace closures had also meant that apprentices under in-formal training known as the Ostad-Shagerdi system had lost both training opportunities and livelihoods. While learning loss is a concern for the education community as a whole, TVET systems are disproportionately vulnerable given the higher share of students from disadvantaged backgrounds, and the remoteness of many students. Prolonged disengagement could increase the risk of attrition and dropouts.

To mitigate the impact of school closures, distance learning approaches have emerged as a popular solution. Countries around the world have pivoted towards a mix of online, television and radio broadcasts to allow learning continuity for students. Despite high hopes, however, there is a growing recognition that the digital divide is widening pre-existing gaps across wealth and geographical lines, often leaving the most vulnerable students behind.

In Afghanistan, many students especially those in rural areas have limited or infrequent access to communications infrastructure. A 2019 Asia Foundation survey found that household internet penetration remains low (31% in urban and 9.0% in rural), while the share of television (91% vs 57%) and radio (62% vs 42%) ownership is higher, but not universal. While most households have at least one member with a mobile phone, many students may not have access to these devices for educational purposes.

TVET delivery through a distance learning is further complicated due to its focus on hands-on training. While the theoretical elements of the curriculum are suited to media broadcasts, most TVET pedagogy relies on demonstration of practical work, specialized equipment and learning-by-doing.

Getting Ahead of the ProblemFaced with a complex set of constraints, policy makers at Afghanistans TVET-Authority (TVETA) developed an Alternative Learning Plan, to ensure its 60,000 students can stay connected to the TVET system.

The plan, supported under the Second Afghanistan Skills Development Project, adapted many of the global good practices to the Afghan context emphasizing simplicity for quick roll out, localized solutions to account for ground realities, and provision through multiple modalities to reach and meet the needs of heterogeneous, hard-to-reach student groups.

First, it was clear that tech solutions were not the main answer for the large majority of students. Given that many students do not have access to digital devices or Internet connectivity, the immediate response prioritized paper-based approaches. The TVET-Authority quickly mobilized its curriculum experts to develop physical chapter note packages for priority trades with the highest student enrollment. These packages are designed to facilitate self-study, providing additional scaffolding through self-instructional plans, supplementary guidelines, and explanatory notes from teachers. The Authority has identified various ways of distributing them to the students, including establishing collection points such as schools in the provinces.

Second, to compensate for the lack of practical instruction, TVETA is preparing a collection of video tutorials to supplement the chapter notes. This involves filming high caliber lead teachers delivering both theoretical content and practical demonstrations. These are slated to be delivered through a range of television and radio broadcasts, and online channels, but also through the physical distribution of CDs and flash-drives directly to the students.

Third, as part of a broader shift to expand distance learning, TVETA also plans to roll out a learning management platform. The e-learning platform will serve as content repository, while a telephone-based helpdesk will provide support and information to students, families, and TVET teachers, and allow TVETA to track implementation progress.

While online platforms may mainly be accessible to urban students for now, these investments balance the need for an immediate response, while building capacity for future growth of the sector. Afghanistans TVET Strategy (2020 2024) envisions distance learning as key path to introduce flexibility to skills delivery and broaden access to underserved groups. This includes targeted interventions for women and girls, youth with low literacy, returning migrants, ex-combatants and those with disabilities.

The Human Capital AgendaThe skills sector can play an outsized role in fragile contexts. Access to marketable skills can provide young people an opportunity to access better livelihoods, in addition to strengthening social cohesion and resilience.

In the short term, TVET can be an essential part of the emergency response, providing skills required to mitigate the negative impacts of the pandemic. As countries emerge from lockdowns, the TVET sector will be central to their economic recovery strategy. Ms. Nadima Sahar, the Director General of the TVET Authority in Afghanistan is convinced that skills development is critical to the human capital agenda and national economic recovery and growth in Afghanistan given its large youth population, informal economy and nascent education sector.

See more here:
Multi-modal TVET delivery during COVID-19: Expanding access to continued learning in Afghanistan - World Bank Group

Afghanistan government's cabinet committee okayed inclusion of mother's name on national identity cards of the country that is battling the deep-rooted misogyny in its society. Afghan cabinet's legal committee has made a proposal to amend the census law so that mother's name can be included in the national identity card of a person.

The proposal needs approval from the Afghan Parliament and assent of Afghan President, it is expected that these steps will not take much time.

Patriarchal set up still defines Afghan society and women are almost always represented with respect to men in thge family. The thought runs so deep that even graves of women has her identity described in relation with men in the family.

Although nod by Afghan cabinet committee is a small step in the right direction, fate of women's rights is coming in question as power sharing deals go on between the Afghan Government and Taliban.

During Taliban rule, unimaginable limitations were imposed on women in all areas of life, Be it personal, social, marital or any conduct, women in Afghanistan were forced to adhere to draconian edicts defined by teh Taliban. Those found 'flouting' rules were subjeted to horrific punishments that even included public executions.

Afghanistan has not even had a census from the 1970s. The national ID card is a step in that direction.

Excerpt from:
Afghan govt cabinet committee gives nod to inclusion of mother`s name on national ID cards - WION

HappyWednesdayand welcome to Overnight Defense.I'm Rebecca Kheel, and here's your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond.CLICK HERE to subscribe to the newsletter.

THE TOPLINE: The Trump administration stepped up its campaign against the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Wednesday, slapping sanctions on its chief prosecutor amid her ongoing investigation into alleged U.S. war crimes in Afghanistan.

Calling the ICC a thoroughly broken and corrupted institution, Secretary of State Mike PompeoMichael (Mike) Richard PompeoOvernight Defense: US sanctions ICC prosecutor amid probe of alleged US war crimes in Afghanistan | Senators urge Pentagon to keep Stars and Stripes running Pompeo: State Department review found GOP convention speech lawful Senate Democrats raise concerns over ability of US overseas voters to cast ballots MORE announced sanctions against chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda.

Sanctions are also being levied against Phakiso Mochochoko, the courts head of jurisdiction, for having materially assisted Bensouda, Pompeo said.

The United States has never ratified the Rome Statute that created the court, and we will not tolerate its illegitimate attempts to subject Americans to its jurisdiction, Pompeo said at a news conference.

Courts response: The ICC condemned Wednesday's sanctions as "another attempt to interfere with the court's judicial and prosecutorial independence."

"These coercive acts, directed at an international judicial institution and its civil servants, are unprecedented and constitute serious attacks against the court, the Rome Statute system of international criminal justice and the rule of law more generally," the court said in a statement.

Background: In 2017, Bensouda requested permission from the court to open a formal investigation into alleged war crimes in Afghanistan, including allegations against U.S. troops, after having conducted a preliminary investigation since 2006. The court authorized her investigation in March.

In response, the Trump administration revoked Bensoudas visa last year.

Earlier this year, President TrumpDonald John TrumpKenosha mayor lifts curfew citing several 'peaceful' nights MSNBC's Joy Reid concedes 'framing' of Muslim comments 'didn't work' Conway says even more 'hidden, undercover' Trump voters will help him win reelection MORE also signed an executive order authorizing sanctions against ICC officials involved in the Afghanistan investigation. The sanctions announced Wednesday were imposed pursuant to that order.

The Trump administration has also railed against the ICC for its ongoing preliminary investigation into alleged war crimes in the Palestinian territories, including Israels settlement policy.

SENATORS BACK STARS AND STRIPES FUNDING: A bipartisan group of senators is calling on the Defense Department to reinstate funding for Stars and Stripes, the editorially independent military newspaper whose future was put in doubt earlier this year after the Pentagon proposed shifting money away from the outlet.

In a letter sent to Defense Secretary Mark EsperMark EsperOvernight Defense: US sanctions ICC prosecutor amid probe of alleged US war crimes in Afghanistan | Senators urge Pentagon to keep Stars and Stripes running Senators call on Pentagon to reinstate funding for Stars and Stripes newspaper Overnight Defense: China aims to double nuclear arsenal | Fort Hood commander removed after string of deaths MORE on Wednesday, the senators argued that funding for the newspaper represented a tiny fraction of the department's annual budget and that cutting it could have a "significantly negative impact on military families."

"We understand that DoD plans to cease publication of Stars and Stripes on September 30, 2020 and completely dissolve the organization by January 31, 2021 as a result of the proposed termination of funding in the fiscal year 2021 President's budget," the letter said.

The letter was organized by Sen. Dianne FeinsteinDianne Emiel FeinsteinOvernight Defense: US sanctions ICC prosecutor amid probe of alleged US war crimes in Afghanistan | Senators urge Pentagon to keep Stars and Stripes running Senators call on Pentagon to reinstate funding for Stars and Stripes newspaper Hillicon Valley: Twitter flags Trump campaign tweet of Biden clip as manipulated media | Democrats demand in-person election security briefings resume | Proposed rules to protect power grid raise concerns MORE (D-Calif.) and co-signed by a bipartisan group of 14 other senators.

The Pentagon and Stars and Stripes did not immediately return requests for comment from The Hill.

Context: The Pentagons proposed fiscal year 2021 budget called for eliminating the $15.5 million in federal funding that goes to Stars and Stripes.

But Congress, as they say, is the one that has the power of the purse.

The Houses fiscal 2021 defense spending bill includes funding for Stars and Stripes. The Senate has yet to release its fiscal 2021 defense spending bill (or any other spending bills for that matter), but nine of the letters signatories are on the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Congress is instead expected to pass a stopgap spending measure known as a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government open after the fiscal year ends. And, as the senators note in their letter, CRs typically prohibit any changes in programs, including ending them.

We seek your written assurance that the Department will comply with this obligation and avoid steps that would preempt the funding prerogatives of Congress, the senators wrote.

REPATRIATED ISIS FIGHTER PLEADS GUILTY: A 23-year-old Dallas man pleaded guilty to a terrorism charge after allegedly spending five years handling communications for ISIS, the Department of Justice announced Wednesday.

Omer Kuzu admitted that he left Texas with his brother, Yusuf, for Turkey in 2014 and was then picked up by an ISIS taxi, according to court documents. They then stayed in several waiting houses before ending up in Mosul, Iraq.

There, he and 40 others allegedly underwent five days of physical and weapons training led by ISIS instructors.

Kuzu was one of 1,500 suspected ISIS fighters that were captured in March 2019 by Syrian Democratic Forces. He was handed over to the FBI and was charged with conspiring to provide material support material to ISIS.

His sentencing is set for January 2021. He faces up to 20 years in federal prison.

ON TAP FOR TOMORROW

David Stilwell, assistant secretary of State for East Asia and Pacific affairs, will speak at a U.S. Institute of Peace event previewing the upcoming Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum at 9 a.m. https://bit.ly/32RwItR

Lee Soo-hyuck, South Koreas ambassador to the United States, will participate in the Institute for Korean Studies at The George Washington Universitys Korea Policy Forum at 10 a.m. https://bit.ly/2QKCtnE

Chief of Naval Personnel Vice Adm. John Nowell Jr. will speak at a virtual U.S. Navy Memorial SITREP Speaker Series event at 1 p.m. https://bit.ly/2YZyeco

ICYMI

-- The Hill: White House calls poisoning of Putin critic 'completely reprehensible'

-- The Hill: Pompeo announces restrictions on Chinese diplomats in US

-- The Hill: Senate Democrats raise concerns over ability of US overseas voters to cast ballots

-- Associated Press: Soldier to receive Medal of Honor for Iraq hostage rescue

-- Bloomberg: Oracle loses appeal in $10 billion Pentagon contract fight

-- USA Today: Where are the Black officers? US Army shows diversity in its ranks but few promotions to the top

See the rest here:
Overnight Defense: US sanctions ICC prosecutor amid probe of alleged US war crimes in Afghanistan | Senators urge Pentagon to keep Stars and Stripes...