The Age andThe Sydney Morning Herald have also obtained a letter written by Australia's former special forces commander,Jeff Sengelman,who blames the war crimes scandal on a"compromised"chain of command,describes special forces'misdeeds and cover-ups as"shameful and embarrassing",and warns a failure to reform would render the SAS and Commando regiments"strategically irrelevant".
"Many have opined to me that the unacceptable behaviours ... were somehow justified by operational imperatives,our sacrifice,and the stressors associated with combat operations,"Mr Sengelman wrote in the April 2016 letter.
"While I am not insensitive to how this attitude may have arisen and am the first to acknowledge the exceptional commitment and sacrifice that operational service has required;this is not and never will be a satisfactory justification for deviation from standards or unacceptable behaviour. This cannot be in doubt. If it is for you,then we need to speak."
While the contents of the Brereton report will remain classified after Justice Brereton hands it to Defence Force Chief Angus Campbell in coming weeks,some insiders have received general briefings about its findings and it is believed Justice Brereton will identify a small group of rogue SAS soldiers as responsible for multiple murders.
Justice Brereton is expected to send several war crimes referrals to the Australian Federal Police,sparking new police investigations in a move likely to require the AFP to dramatically boost the resourcing of its existing war crimes investigation teams. Those teams have been conductingtwo war crimes investigations since June 2018 into Victoria Cross recipient Ben Roberts-Smith after referrals by now former defence chief Mark Binskin. Mr Roberts-Smith denies all wrongdoing and issuing Nine Entertainment,the owner of this masthead,forpublishing allegations that he is a war criminal,a key target of the Brereton inquiry and that hepunched a woman in a domestic violence incident.
Defence has spent months planning its public response to the independent Brereton inquiry report,according to Defence sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media. The sources anticipate a summary of Mr Brereton's findings will be released to the public.