A petition to “free Ben Roberts-Smith” gained more than 10,000 signatures following his high-profile arrest on Tuesday.
Footage of the dramatic moment shows Australia’s most decorated living soldier being escorted off a Qantas plane by Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers at Sydney airport.
Ben Roberts-Smith was charged with five counts of murder related to the alleged unlawful killings of Afghan nationals between 2009 and 2012.
He is expected to remain in custody on remand until at least April 17 where he may apply for bail.
The arrest came after the Victoria Cross recipient lost a landmark defamation battle, which found, on the civil standard of balance of probability, a series of stories alleging war crimes relating to his deployment in Afghanistan to be factual.
The petition, however, created by political activist Drew Pavlou, appears to reflect a deepening national divide that has become a focal point for those frustrated with the investigation.
Another one of Pavlou’s posts gained international attention after tech mogul Elon Musk commented that Ben Roberts-Smith’s prosecution “sounds insane”.
A support campaign for Mr Roberts-Smith seems to be growing, with both Gina Rinehart and Pauline Hanson defending the former corporal.
One Nation candidate for Hunter, Stuart Bonds said he supports the opinion of his party leader.
“She’s met him and his family and she knows them intimately. If (Hanson’s) backing him, I am too,” he told News.com.au.
“It’s completely sending mixed signals to our forces.”
For many the arrest was highly anticipated and set a new standard for military accountability.
Executive Director at the Australian Centre for International Justice said the arrest signified a “long-awaited step for victims and affected communities in seeking meaningful accountability for these serious accusations”.
“The proper investigation and prosecution of alleged war crimes by members of the Australian special forces in Afghanistan are essential to ensuring justice,” he said.
The public has been invested in these allegations for years, following the high-profile collapse of Mr Roberts-Smith’s defamation action against Nine-owned newspapers.
In 2023, Justice Anthony Besanko ruled that on the balance of probabilities, the soldier was involved in the murder of four unarmed Afghani men.
While that finding set the stage for current events, the transition to criminal charges has reignited a fierce national debate.
