Australian Federal Police considers war crimes brief involving Australian citizen in Gaza

The Australian Federal Police is considering a brief of evidence alleging war crimes and crimes against humanity by an Australian citizen who fought with the Israeli Defence Force in Gaza. The complaint was delivered in May and concerns conduct said to have taken place in 2023 and 2024. Police have not said when they will decide whether to open a formal investigation.

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The brief was submitted by the Australian Centre for International Justice and is said to set out three alleged offences. According to the material provided, two of those relate to war crimes involving the destruction and appropriation of property and attacks on civilian objects, while the third is described as a crime against humanity. The centre says the complaint concerns a single person and includes satellite images, social media material and witness statements.

The allegations focus on the destruction of a residential building in Gaza that the centre says was home to several Palestinian families. The organisation's founder and principal lawyer, Rawan Arraf, said the complaint asks police to investigate an Australian citizen who was present and fighting with the Israeli military in Gaza during the period covered by the allegations. She said the file is substantial, describing it as a 65-page complaint with 43 annexures running to hundreds of pages.

The case matters because it raises the question of how Australian law applies to citizens accused of serious international crimes overseas. The material supplied says it is not a crime for an Australian to serve in a foreign military force, but any alleged war crime is dealt with by Commonwealth authorities. That places the AFP at the centre of a sensitive legal and diplomatic issue linked to the Gaza war, where allegations of unlawful conduct have drawn international scrutiny.

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The complaint also reflects the wider role of civil society groups in documenting alleged violations during the conflict. The Australian Centre for International Justice says it has assembled evidence from multiple sources and is seeking a formal police investigation. The AFP has previously said it is aware of allegations of war crimes by Australian citizens overseas, but it has not indicated whether this case will proceed.

What remains unclear is whether police will treat the brief as sufficient to launch a formal inquiry, and if so, what offences would be examined first. There is also no public indication of any response from the individual named in the complaint. The next development to watch is whether the AFP confirms an investigation or closes the matter without further action.

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