Australian war crimes whistleblower sentenced to 5 years in prison
The Guardian reported that David McBride, a former Australian army lawyer, has been sentenced to five years and eight months in prison for leaking “classified documents” related to the Afghan war. On Tuesday, May 13, The Guardian announced the conviction of the former lawyer, stating that he shared the classified documents with journalists after stealing […]
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The Guardian reported that David McBride, a former Australian army lawyer, has been sentenced to five years and eight months in prison for leaking “classified documents” related to the Afghan war.
On Tuesday, May 13, The Guardian announced the conviction of the former lawyer, stating that he shared the classified documents with journalists after stealing them.
According to the report, Mr. McBride collected documents related to war crimes by Australian forces in Afghanistan during 2014 and 2015 and made them available to journalists.
The exposure of these classified documents by the former lawyer has brought the war crimes of Australian forces in Afghanistan into focus, initiating investigations into these matters.
The Guardian writes that the court believes that McBride took 235 documents from the Australian Defence Ministry offices between May 2014 and December 2015, of which 207 were classified as secret and confidential, and some of these documents were also considered cabinet documents.
Mr. McBride is the first person imprisoned in Australia regarding this leak.
Following these reports, a four-year investigation by the Australian Defence Ministry led to evidence showing that Australian special forces illegally killed 39 Afghans.
The post Australian war crimes whistleblower sentenced to 5 years in prison appeared first on Khaama Press.