Ben Roberts-Smith: Dacwaddiisa xaqiraadka oo Kerry Stokes ku kacday in ka badan $30 milyan

Warqabadka Victoria Cross ayaa sheegay in uu si buuxda uga hortagayo eedeymaha dagaal ee lagu soo oogay, isagoo diiday in uu wax ka beddelo xirfaddiisa milatari.

Ben Roberts-Smith, oo ah warqabadka Victoria Cross, ayaa sheegay in dacwaddiisa xaqiraadka ee guuldareystay ay Kerry Stokes ku kacday lacag ka badan $30 milyan, isagoo sidoo kale sheegay in uusan wax ka beddeli doonin xirfaddiisa milatari. Hadalka ayaa yimid intii uu sugayay dacwad ku saabsan eedeymo dagaal oo lagu soo oogay.

Eedeymaha dagaalka iyo mawqifka Roberts-Smith

Ben Roberts-Smith ayaa lagu soo oogay shan eedeymo oo ah dil dagaal oo la xiriira howlgalladiisa Qeybta Gaarka ah ee Ciidanka Cirka (Special Air Service Regiment) ee Afgaanistaan intii u dhaxeysay 2009 iyo 2012. Xeer ilaaliyayaashu waxay sheegayaan in dhibbanayaashu ahaayeen dad Afgaanistaan ah oo aan hubaysnayn oo aan ka qeyb qaadan dagaalka, kuwaas oo uu Roberts-Smith toogtay ama ay toogteen askar uu amray. Kiisku wuxuu ku soo noqon doonaa maxkamadda bisha December.

Intii uu wareysiga siinayay 2GB, Roberts-Smith wuxuu sheegay in uu si buuxda uga hortegi doono eedeymaha. Wuxuu yiri: "Waxaan sii wadi doonaa mawqifka aan had iyo jeer haystay, in aan si buuxda ula dagaallami doono eedeymahan iyo dacwadahooda." Wuxuu kaloo sheegay in uusan wax ka beddeli doonin xirfaddiisa milatari, isagoo xusay in uu diyaar u ahaa in uu u dhinto dalkiisa, balse uusan waligiis jebin xeerarka howlgalka.

Khasaaraha dhaqaale iyo aragtida maxkamadda

Roberts-Smith wuxuu qirtay in uu ahaa qof aan waayo-aragnimo u lahayn nidaamka maxkamadda madaniga ah ka dib markii uu ku guuldareystay dacwad xaqiraad oo uu ka soo oogay wargeyska Nine. Maxkamadda Federaalka waxay ku go'aamisay in, iyadoo la eegayo caddaynta, eedeymaha ah in uu mas'uul ka ahaa ama ku lug lahaa dhimashada afar maxbuus oo Afgaanistaan ah ay run yihiin. Dacwaddiisa waxaa maalgeliyay Kerry Stokes, oo ah maalqabeenka warbaahinta, kaas oo Roberts-Smith sheegay in uu taageeray laga bilaabo maalinta koowaad, oo ay ku jirto bixinta biilasha sharciga.

Markii la weydiiyay khasaaraha Stokes, Roberts-Smith wuxuu yiri: "Ma haysto tiro sax ah, laakiin waxaan dhihi lahaa waa in ay ka badan tahay 30 milyan." Wuxuu sheegay in uusan ka hadli karin dacwadaha dembiga ama eedeymaha gaarka ah. Wuxuu kaloo sheegay in uu ka shakiyay in la heli karo 12 xubnood oo garsoorayaal ah oo aan horey u samaysan ra'yi, sababtoo ah warbaahinta ayaa si ballaaran uga warantay eedeymaha. Wuxuu yiri: "Sidee baad u heshaa dad aan horey u lahayn mawqif?" Balse wuxuu sheegay in uu ku qanacsan yahay fikradda ah in 12 qof oo caadi ah ay dhageystaan kiiska.

The Victoria Cross recipient told 2GB he will fight war crime murder charges in their entirety and would not change anything about his military career.

War veteran Ben Roberts-Smith has said the cost of his failed defamation case to billionaire backer Kerry Stokes would have to be upwards of $30 million, in a lengthy radio interview during which he again denied wrongdoing.

Charges and a pledge to fight them

Roberts-Smith, a Victoria Cross recipient, has been charged with five counts of war crime murder relating to his deployments with the Special Air Service Regiment in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2012. Prosecutors allege the victims were unarmed Afghan nationals not taking part in hostilities, shot by Roberts-Smith or by soldiers acting under his orders. The case will return to court in December.

In the interview with 2GB host Ben Fordham, Roberts-Smith said he would contest the allegations. "I'll maintain the position I have always maintained, that I will fight these allegations and their charges in their entirety," he said. He added that he was not able to speak about the criminal proceedings or specific allegations.

No regrets and a costly civil loss

Asked whether there was anything he would change about his military career, Roberts-Smith said: "I wouldn't change a single thing." He went on: "I would do it all exactly the same way, because I know I did the right thing, I know I was prepared to die for this country every time I went outside the wire, and I know I did whatever I could to keep my mates alive, but I never broke the rules of engagement."

Roberts-Smith conceded he was naive about the civil court system after losing a defamation case against Nine newspapers. The Federal Court found on the balance of probabilities that allegations he was responsible for, or complicit in, the deaths of four detainees in Afghanistan were substantially true. His case was financially backed by Kerry Stokes, who Roberts-Smith said had supported him from day one, including by paying legal bills. "I don't have an exact figure, but I would say it would have to be upwards of 30 million," he said of the cost to Stokes.

Questions over selecting a jury

Roberts-Smith acknowledged his criminal trial may be more than five years away and said he was unsure whether 12 jurors who had not formed an opinion could be found, given extensive media reporting of the allegations. "How do you find people that don't already have a position?" he asked. "Just in that sense alone, can there be a fair trial? I can't answer that question and I'm sure that argument is going to be had, and we'll find out whether they think it can or can't."

He said he was comfortable with the idea of 12 normal people listening to the case. "I know we will be able to explain to them the things they don't understand about the military enough that when they hear the actual evidence, they will understand where all the holes are and how it's come about," he said.