{"id":755484,"date":"2026-06-23T17:29:28","date_gmt":"2026-06-23T17:29:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/755484\/"},"modified":"2026-06-23T17:29:28","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T17:29:28","slug":"australian-war-memorial-anzac-hall-opening-ben-roberts-smith-pulls-out-of-ceremony-after-falling-ill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/755484\/","title":{"rendered":"Australian War Memorial Anzac Hall opening: Ben Roberts-Smith pulls out of ceremony after falling ill"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"MatthewSave<\/p>\n

You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n

Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n

AAA<\/p>\n

The circus didn\u2019t move on; in the end, it never arrived.<\/p>\n

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese suspended parliamentary businesses early on Tuesday to allow federal MPs to attend the opening of the Australian War Memorial\u2019s new Anzac Hall. It should have been a unifying moment, with the focus on the veterans who fought and died for their nation in conflicts overseas.<\/p>\n

Instead, a planned appearance by decorated soldier turned accused war criminal Ben Roberts-Smith threatened to turn the event into a media frenzy and another front in the culture wars. Roberts-Smith successfully varied two of his bail conditions last week so he could attend the ceremony.<\/p>\n

\"OneOne Nation party leader Pauline Hanson and United Australia Party\u2019s Ralph Babet at the opening of the Australian War Memorial\u2019s Anzac Hall.James Brickwood<\/p>\n

Greens leader Larissa Waters said she would skip the opening given Roberts-Smith is facing five counts of the war crime of murder for his time with the Special Air Service Regiment in Afghanistan. He denies the charges.<\/p>\n

Defence Minister Richard Marles defended the Victoria Cross winner\u2019s decision to attend the opening, saying it was \u201cabsolutely appropriate\u201d for him to be included.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a presumption of innocence in this country and Ben Roberts\u2011Smith is a recipient of the Victoria Cross, and the Victoria Cross recipients have been invited to this, which is appropriate and so I am comfortable about that,\u201d Marles said.<\/p>\n

\"LiberalLiberal Mp Andrew Hastie arrives at the Australian War Memorial. James Brickwood <\/p>\n

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson was more than comfortable, she was enthused.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll be going, and I am hoping to actually catch up with him, say hello to him, give him my support,\u201d said Hanson, a passionate Roberts-Smith defender.<\/p>\n

As dignitaries began arriving in Canberra for the lavish event, however, Roberts-Smith\u2019s lawyers announced he would be a no-show.<\/p>\n

Roberts-Smith\u2019s barrister Slade Howell told the Downing Centre local court in Sydney that his client would no longer be attending after he \u201cfell ill\u201d with a bad stomach flu.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a result has not travelled to Canberra to attend the official opening at the war memorial,\u201d Howell told the court.<\/p>\n

This absence meant he did not come face-to-face with Liberal frontbencher and former special forces soldier Andrew Hastie, who has become a hate figure in parts of the conservative movement for appearing as a witness in Roberts-Smith\u2019s unsuccessful defamation trial against The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.<\/p>\n

Related Article\"Liberal<\/a><\/p>\n

The nation\u2019s top military leaders, including outgoing defence force chief David Johnston, attended the event, as did Albanese.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat a sublime and powerful addition it is. A bold vision turned into a reality that enhances the institution of which it is now part,\u201d the prime minister said of the new hall, which includes three major new galleries on Australian defence personnel\u2019s service in Afghanistan, peacekeeping operations and the Middle East.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt amounts to an act of profound respect from the nation to all who have served in our name, and all who serve now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"BenBen Roberts-Smith outside court in Sydney earlier this month.James Brickwood<\/p>\n

War Memorial director Matt Anderson described the new gallery as the country\u2019s \u201cmost comprehensive exhibition ever created on Australia\u2019s involvement in Afghanistan, Australia\u2019s longest war\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is so contemporary the galleries were formed in real time. The fall of Kabul was happening as our curators were collecting the unfolding stories,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

As she arrived at event, Hanson expressed disappointment that Roberts-Smith could not attend, saying he deserved to be there.<\/p>\n

Not everyone felt so glum about Roberts-Smith\u2019s conspicuous non-attendance. As much as they may have defended his right to appear at the event, you could almost hear the sighs of relief emanating from the event\u2019s organisers.<\/p>\n

The prospect of an ugly, or at the very least tense, spectacle had been averted.<\/p>\n

Cut through the noise of federal politics with news, views and expert analysis. Subscribers can sign up to our weekly Inside Politics newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Save<\/p>\n

You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n

Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n

\"MatthewMatthew Knott<\/a> is the foreign affairs and national security correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via X<\/a>, Facebook<\/a> or email<\/a>.From our partners<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":755485,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[64,63,44],"class_list":["post-755484","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-australia","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/755484","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=755484"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/755484\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/755485"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=755484"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=755484"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=755484"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}