An Australian Army inquiry, yet to be released, has cleared members of the elite SAS of torture claims in East Timor. But it's believed the inquiry currently has an open finding on the central allegation, that 11 Timorese were held handcuffed and blindfolded for two days without food and water. It's understandood the inquiry found no substance for two other allegations, that 'trophy photos' were taken alongside the corpses of militimen, and that Timorese were to pushed to within centimetres of the corpses battle scarred heads.

Presenter/Interviewer: Rafael Epstein

Epstein: After the dramatic shooting of two SAS troops in an ambush in October 1999, it seems clear East Timorese already captured that day were subject to the resulting anger from Australian troops. Eleven Timorese had earlier been taken at road blocks, they were flown back to the airport in Dili by Army helicopter.

The central allegation is that the 11 captives were forced to sit cross-legged, blindfolded and handcuffed for two days and were denied food and water. If true, it's illegal under international and Australian military law.

After speaking to 350 witnesses, including soldiers from the UK, New Zealand and Australia, and some of the Timorese who were mistreated, the inquiry returned an open finding.

A senior source with access to the inquiry says investigators, quote: "Often get contradictory evidence with such claims," but, quote: "There was no evidence." An open finding means there is, quote: "Some substance to the claim, but no conclusive evidence."

Those who have an open finding against their name include members of the Australian Army's Military Intelligence Corps. It's understood that they determined the way suspects were held. AM was told they and a handful of other soldiers, not SAS troops, were, quote: "Absolutely not allowed to deploy to the Gulf this year."

The Prime Minister says he won't pre-empt the Army's official findings.

John Howard: Well, I am generally aware of that and the matter is being dealt with in accordance with the appropriate processes.

Journalist: Do you have anything to add?

John Howard: No, no, I don't explain something about an internal matter of that kind. It's being handled in the appropriate way, I'm told, and when the result of the investigation and enquiries have been completed, then the military will have something further to say about it.

Rafael Epstein: The Opposition says after two years the Army should release the inquiry's results.

A former SAS trooper, who says he has not spoke to investigators, told Perth's Sunday Times, the SAS were involved and he made two more claims. That SAS troops took trophy photos posing alongside the corpses of militiamen killed in the day's earlier shooting and that troops forced the faces of Timorese suspects right up to the heads of those corpses.

But investigators say there's no evidence for those allegations. They say the suspects were asked to come to a tent in a civil way to help identify the dead militiamen and they found no evidence of photos beyond those taken for operational reasons.

The inquiry looked at a range of allegations in East Timor. It cleared elite SAS troops of any major wrongdoing but some ADF troops, blocked from deploying to the Gulf, will wait for the inquiry's end to find out if they'll have a permanent black mark against their name and whether they'll face further investigation.