AUSTRALIAN army whistleblower David McBride, who leaked allegations to the media of war crimes committed by his country in Afghanistan, lost a court bid to have his prison sentence reduced today.

The three Australian Capital Territory Court of Appeal judges unanimously rejected the former army lawyer’s appeal against the severity of a five-year, eight-month prison sentence imposed a year ago.

The judges also rejected Mr McBride’s argument that as a military officer he had sworn an oath to Queen Elizabeth II and therefore had a sworn duty to act in the “public interest.”

“To the contrary, the oath obliged the appellant [McBride] to discharge his duties ‘according to the law’,” the judges said in a written summary of their ruling.

Mr McBride said through his lawyers: “It is my own conscience and the people of Australia that I answer to. I have kept my oath to the Australian people.”

He pleaded guilty last year to three charges, including theft and sharing classified documents with journalists. 

Human rights campaigners say that Mr McBride remains the only person to be imprisoned over allegations of war crimes committed by Australian special forces troops in Afghanistan between 2005 and 2016.

A military report published in 2020 recommended that 19 current and former soldiers face criminal investigations over 39 unlawful killings in Afghanistan.

Former Special Air Service Regiment soldier Oliver Schulz was charged in March 2023 with murdering an unarmed Afghan in 2012. He has yet to stand trial.

Former SAS corporal Ben Roberts-Smith, Australia’s most-decorated living veteran, lost an appeal two weeks ago against a civil court ruling that he had unlawfully killed four unarmed Afghans.

Mr Roberts-Smith vowed to lodge an appeal with the High Court. 

Mr McBride’s lawyers also said that they would take their appeal to the High Court.