Ben Roberts-Smith directed special forces soldiers in training to shoot Afghan prisoners and "surprised" a comrade by ordering a mock execution, a witness has testified in the Federal Court.
The former SAS soldier codenamed Person 19 told the war veteran's defamation trial on Tuesday about a 2012 training exercise at Lancelin near Perth simulating "live fire' conditions in Afghanistan.
Another trainee acting the role of an Afghan "civilian ... not an enemy combatant," in traditional dress was kneeling facing a wall while his squadron observed, the former commando said.
