An inquiry is underway into the controversial SAS raid on an Afghan village, which is said to be one of the most complex inquiries in New Zealand history. The main topic today has been deciding what information is to be made public.
Dozens of claims have been made in the controversial book Hit and Run, which brought the most serious allegations ever to be aimed at the elite NZSAS. The book, by authors Nicky Hager and Jon Stephenson, was published 18 months ago. It alleges war crimes, the death of six civilians and wounding of 15 others during a "revenge" raid in Afghanistan on August 22 in 2010.
But the Defence Force is disputing those claims, saying Hager and Stephenson made 105 errors.
Also today, a Northland garage has had its licence for issuing warrants of fitness suspended indefinitely, after it passed a vehicle which was later involved in a fatal crash. The NZTA has written to all vehicle owners receiving WoFs from Dargaville Diesel Specialists, recommending they get their vehicles re-checked.