Campaign for David McBride (@mcbride-campaign.mastodon.au.ap.brid.gy)

McBride’s Appeals Rejected __Shares __________________ **The Australian government whistleblower is headed back to jail with no end of incarceration in sight. He is serving nearly six years for leaking documents to the media exposing Australian war crimes in Afghanistan, reports Joe Lauria.** David McBride. (Cathy Vogan/Consortium News) **By****Joe Lauria in Canberra, Australia **_Special to Consortium News_ **** **A** three-judge panel at the Supreme Court in Australia’s capital Wednesday spent less than one minute dismissing all appeals by David McBride, sending the government whistleblower back to prison where he is serving a six-year sentence for exposing his country’s war crimes in Afghanistan. McBride appeared only briefly in court and waved to his lawyer, family and the few supporters who were able to make it into the courtroom. After the judges pronounced their decision, he was whisked off back to his Canberra jail cell, leaving his wife in tears. His attorney and a few supporters were left stunned and ashen-faced as they reeled from the ruling. McBride’s next step could be to ask leave of the High Court, Australia’ highest court, to hear his case. That could take many months with no guarantee the appeal will be heard. The Supreme Court on Wednesday seemed to have wanted to minimize the number of McBride supporters in the courtroom, as previous hearings have produced scenes of standing ovations from the packed public gallery. This time McBride’s name and courtroom number were not posted on a large board in the court’s lobby, leaving his supporters scrambling to find out where his hearing was. By the time they arrived, McBride and the judges were already gone three minutes after the hearing had begun. **DEVELOPING STORY — COME BACK FOR UPDATES** https://consortiumnews.com/2025/05/27/mcbrides-appeals-rejected/