The case against two Army Reserve soldiers charged with manslaughter in Afghanistan will not proceed to a court martial, a judge advocate has decided.
A court martial set for July 11 will now not proceed and the prosecution will have to decide whether to bring alternative charges against the pair.
Former defence chief General Peter Cosgrove says two Army Reserve soldiers now "have their lives back", after manslaughter charges against them were dropped.
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Following the decision by a judge advocate in Sydney, Mr Cosgrove said he felt relief for the soldiers.
"They had to stand up straight and let the legal system work itself out," he told Macquarie Radio on Friday.
"It must have been terrible for them and their loved ones and their mates while they went through this process.
"But in the end it seems to me a decision has been reached that gives them their lives back."
The charges related to a February 12, 2009 incident that involved members of the Special Operations Task Group undertaking a compound clearance operation in Oruzgan province.
Six civilians, including five children, were killed as a result of the operation.
The Army Reserve soldiers, identified only as Sergeant J and Lance Corporal D by order of the judge advocate, had been charged with manslaughter and, in the alternative, two counts of dangerous conduct, with negligence as to consequence.
"They were always going to have a strong defence on the manslaughter issue," Mr Cosgrove said, citing "the terrible complexity of what happens in Afghanistan" as well as "the stark matter that they would have no doubt have felt that their lives were in danger".
"(They) were fundamentally defending themselves while they were carrying out their mission."
Mr Cosgrove said he understood any other charges against the pair were of "a much lesser nature... and not nearly as grave".
He said soldiers faced a "dilemma" when they went house to house looking for "some murderous Taliban and then getting involved in a
firefight".
"You can understand why (Judge Advocate) Brigadier Ian Westwood thought that the charges in the end wouldn't stick," he said.
Judge Advocate Westwood was delivering his judgment on pre-trial issues relating to the men's case.
