Veterans and the Australian War Memorial demand publication of delayed Middle East war histories

Australia’s official histories of the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts were commissioned in 2015 at a cost of nearly $13 million and completed by 2023, yet only one of the four Middle-East volumes has received clearance for publication. Veteran organisations including the RSL, Legacy and the Australian War Memorial are pressing the Albanese administration to accelerate the review, arguing that the delay undermines veterans’ ability to understand their own service.

Figures such as RSL national president Peter Tinley, former SAS commander, and Australian War Memorial director Matt Anderson have publicly appealed for action. The clearance involves multiple departments—Prime Minister and Cabinet, Defence, diplomatic and intelligence agencies—and has been described as sluggish bureaucracy. A recent round-table led by Professor Craig Stockings highlighted the negative impact on the veteran community, while former intelligence officer Lisa, who lives with PTSD, said the histories could help answer lingering personal questions. The push comes amid broader scrutiny of Australia’s Middle-East operations, including ongoing war-crime allegations against former special forces soldier Ben Roberts-Smith.