A Senate Estimates Committee has been told Australia’s Attorney-General signed off on the prosecution of decorated war veteran Ben Roberts-Smith quicker than it took the approval process to prosecute ISIS brides who returned to Australia and were charged with crimes against humanity.
It was revealed in a Senate Estimates Committee that Attorney-General Michelle Rowland took several weeks last year to approve the prosecution of three Australian woman allegedly linked to ISIS when they returned to Australia from Syria.
Two of the woman were charged with crimes against humanity offences, while another was charged with terrorism offences earlier this month.
The woman were part of a group of Australian citizens – comprising four women and nine children – who arrived on flights to Sydney and Melbourne from Doha after leaving a refugee camp in northeast Syria.
In response to questioning from Shadow Attorney-General Michaelia Cash, officials said the approval from Ms Rowland took 25 days.
But when Minister Don Farrell provided the committee a correction on how long it took Ms Rowland to approve the prosecution for the Australian women returning from Syria, it contradicted information previously provided to Senator Michaelia Cash.
“The question was asked earlier about the timeline for when the Attorney-General provided her consent to prosecute Australians returning from Syria,” Mr Farrell said.
“I can confirm that, in relation to the consent to prosecute, the brief was provided by the Attorney-General’s department to the Attorney-General on the 11th of December 2025 and the Attorney-General provided her consent on the 15th of December 2025.“
But he was unable to clarify what took place weeks earlier on November 20 when questioned by Senator Cash.
“So the 20th November, what happened there?” Ms Cash asked.
“It is rotten because I was given the 20th of November to the 15th of December.”
“Well, I’m, I think I’m clarifying those dates, but if that’s not the case I shall provide you with advice,“ Mr Farrell responded.
It took Ms Rowlands two days to approve the prosecution of Ben Roberts-Smith.
Kawsar Ahmad, also known as Kawsar Abbas, has been charged with four crimes against humanity offences of enslavement, possessing a slave, using a slave and engaging in slave trading, after she touched down in Melbourne.
Zeinab Ahmad, also known as Zeinab Ahmed, is charged with two offences of enslavement and using a slave.
According to court documents, warrants for the pair’s arrest were issued on February 17 with the AFP citing that they were “returning from extended period overseas”.
A third woman, Janai Safar, is facing charges of entering or remaining in a prohibited region and belonging to a terror group, following her arrest in Sydney.
Mr Roberts-Smith was charged with alleged war crimes after he failed to sue Nine Newspapers for defamation in the Federal Court, over a series of stories in which he was accused of taking part in unlawful kills during his Afghanistan deployment.
The Victoria Cross and Medal for Gallantry recipient has consistently denied the allegations, and took his fight all the way to the High Court which refused him special leave to appeal.
He was arrested by the Australian Federal Police when he arrived in Sydney on a flight from Brisbane with his family last month.
He has been charged with five counts of war crimes – murder and has indicated he will fight the charges.
It is alleged he took part in five killings between 2009 and 2012, during his deployment in Afghanistan.
