August 2020

Australia's special forces problem: why the SAS is facing a crisis

Submitted by Paul Daley on

An inquiry into allegations of war crimes committed by a small number of elite troops in Afghanistan is expected to report imminently. Can the regiments survive the fallout?

In the heart of the Australian War Memorial hang twin portraits of Ben Roberts-Smith, the most decorated soldier of his time and now its most controversial former special forces warrior.

In these pandemic times I conduct a daily privilege stocktake as I contemplate the months ahead | Paul Daley

Submitted by Paul Daley on

Beauty is harder to find these days – sometimes it’s in places you mightn’t have noticed before

Beauty can be elusive these dark days.

Eyes widen with wariness above masks, multi-patterned and coloured flourishes that defy the pandemic’s gloom, as we widen our passage on the street and in the supermarket.

Related: From the wreck of the pandemic we can salvage and resurrect an inner life | Nyadol Nyuon