# Conservative civil war at News24 over Ben Roberts-Smith: INSIDE MAIL reveals the behind-the-scenes battle lines after Andrew Bolt’s extraordinary split from Peta Credlin

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/conservative-civil-war-at-news24-over-ben-roberts-smith-inside-mail-reveals-the-behind-the-scenes-battle-lines-after-andrew-bolts-extraordinary-split-from-peta-credlin/
- Published: 2026-10-27T05:40:51+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-27T06:03:41+00:00
- Original publisher: Daily Mail (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16241273/ben-roberts-smith-andrew-bolt-peta-credlin-news24-andrew-hastie-conservative-split-supporters.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490
- Topics: World

## Key points

- Andrew Bolt criticised a campaign backing Ben Roberts-Smith.
- Roberts-Smith denies five war crimes charges and is on bail.
- The dispute has exposed divisions among conservative commentators.

## Summary

Andrew Bolt has broken with some conservative colleagues by criticising efforts to build public support for former SAS soldier Ben Roberts-Smith. The dispute highlights a divide at News24 over whether Roberts-Smith’s supporters should campaign on his behalf while serious criminal allegations remain before the courts.

Bolt said a lobbying firm had sought to arrange a meeting with Roberts-Smith and that an intermediary wanted him to attack Liberal MP Andrew Hastie, who gave evidence against Roberts-Smith in a defamation case. Roberts-Smith lost that case and was arrested last year, then charged with five war crimes offences relating to deployments from 2009 to 2012; he denies the allegations and is on bail. News24 host Peta Credlin has publicly defended him, while Bolt says the allegations should be settled in court.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.