Government Apologizes for Failing Veterans as Royal Commission Delivers Interim Report on Military Suicides

An Australian soldier from 7 Brigade operates a machine gun through the turret of a truck as part of exercise Talisman Sabre in Rockhampton, Australia, on July 9, 2015. Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images

The federal government has apologised to Australian veterans and their families for failings in the way the defence forces and veterans affairs department has operated in the past.

The apology comes after the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide released a 300-page interim report and announced 13 initial recommendations on Aug. 11.