Australian defence inquiry finds no evidence of Afghan mistreatment

29/08/2008 23:17:39

An inquiry by the Australian Defence Force has found there's no evidence to support claims its soldiers mistreated Afghan detainees in Afghanistan.

The Defence Force says an Afghan soldier claimed that four suspected Taliban members were bashed by Australian soldiers in April after the death of Australian soldier Jason Marks.

The Vice Chief of the Defence Force, Lieutenant General David Hurley says medical evidence and witness statements don't support the claims.

He says there appears to have been a cultural misunderstanding.

"The inquiry officer found that the allegations were most likely the result of a young Afghan soldier at the forward operating base being culturally offended by what he believed to be harsh treatment of an Afghan elder and an Afghan amputee by non-Afghan personnel," he said.

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