A trial,expected to take six to eight weeks,will begin in Sydney on June 7.
In a preliminary judgment on Thursday,Justice Anthony Besanko said he would allow four Afghan villagers and one person who has been posted overseas with the Australian Defence Force to give evidence in the proceedings remotely.
Justice Besanko said one Afghan witness was expected to give evidence that he saw his uncle,Ali Jan,get kicked off a cliff by Mr Roberts-Smith in September 2012 in the village of Darwan.
“He claims he saw the applicant kick Ali Jan off the small cliff,” Justice Besanko said in a judgment on Thursday.
“He claims that Ali Jan was then taken to a cornfield by two soldiers who were short in stature. He claims Ali Jan was shot by a soldier,although it is not actually clear from his outline that he saw this happen. He claims that when he saw Ali Jan’s body,he noticed he had been shot in the face.”
Three other witnesses who also lived in Darwan at the time are expected to give evidence that they saw or heard parts of the alleged incident.
The remaining witness is expected to give evidence about the reputation of Mr Roberts-Smith,including allegations that he bullied someone.