The annual report emphasises the four-year Brereton war crimes inquiry is not investigating decisions made during the heat of the battle, which will mean it may be difficult to write off any confirmed breaches as occurring in the "fog of war". "Its focus is on the treatment of persons who were clearly non-combatants or who were no longer combatants," the report notes. Former prime minister Tony Abbott has previously urged Australians not to rush to judge soldiers who were "operating in the heat of combat under the fog of war by the same standards that we would judge civilians operating in the ordinary circumstances of Australian life". The update on the inquiry follows revelations in The Age, Sydney Morning Herald and 60 Minutes last September that Australian special forces soldiers have confessed to murdering and brutalising detainees in Afghanistan. Colleagues familiar with the incidents say they cannot be explained by the "fog of war". Members of both of Australia's special forces regiments - the Commandos and the Special Air Service Regiment - have given evidence to the war crimes inquiry led by senior judge Paul Brereton about the summary execution of multiple prisoners in breach of the Geneva conventions.

Multiple defence sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, have previously confirmed that evidence exists of Australian soldiers assaulting or murdering unarmed or handcuffed detainees in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2012. More than a dozen serving and former special forces members, including high-ranking officers speaking on the condition of anonymity, stressed that it was soldiers themselves who had brought the conduct to light. Loading The war crimes inquiry was ordered in 2016 by the Chief of the Defence Force Angus Campbell when he was army chief. In Inspector-General James Gaynor’s annual report, he defends the length of the long-running inquiry by describing the extreme challenge of breaking the special forces' code of silence and also dealing with the "serious subject matter" of the allegations. The report notes that it has taken some years for members of the Special Forces community - both those who continue to serve and former members - to be prepared to make disclosures to the inquiry. The report says they required sufficient confidence in the inquiry and "the genuineness of Defence senior leadership's desire to find out if the rumours were true".

“More witnesses have been prepared to make disclosures and more evidence has continued to emerge... and some reinforcing or corroborating existing lines of inquiry,” the report states. “Gaining the confidence and trust of some of these witnesses has required considerable time and effort.” Sources familiar with the matter said the strongest evidence obtained by the inquiry involves confessions from soldiers. It is illegal under the laws of war to kill or brutalise a prisoner or a civilian who is posing no risk. In addition to the Brereton inquiry, the Australian Federal Police has launched two inquiries into war crimes allegations. The inquiry is now collecting the final tranche of evidence and will report its findings to Mr Campbell, who has privately told colleagues he supports the core elements of the final report being made public. Defence Minister Linda Reynolds on Tuesday said she expected the the inspector-general would hand down the findings within the next few months and it would then be up to Mr Campbell to decide on "appropriate further actions".

"The ADF is well known and highly respected around the world for its exemplary standards and its insistence on them," Senator Reynolds said. "Where there are serious rumours and allegations raised about the conduct of our ADF members, Australians would rightly expect that they are thoroughly examined according to the rigorous and well-established processes in place. "Australians would also expect that ADF members are treated with utmost fairness throughout these processes." She said a range of legal, psychological, medical, pastoral, and social work support services continued to be made available to witnesses and other individuals involved in the inquiry. "I strongly encourage serving and former ADF members and their families to continue to reach out and seek the help they need," she said.