A U.N.-backed war crimes court in Sierra Leone is expected to deliver its verdict Wednesday for three rebel commanders charged with crimes against humanity.
“There is a great need for the activities of the Special Court, which is a chapter of the war, to be quickly concluded so that the nation can move on,” said Sierra Leone’s president, Ernest Bai Koroma.
The Special Court for Sierra Leone was established in 2002 following a decade’s worth of conflict. Rebel leader Issa Sesay and two top commanders, Morris Kallon and Augustine Gbao, issued not-guilty pleas in an 18-count indictment.
Each of the three men faces charges stemming from attacks on U.N. peacekeepers in the region, sexual violence and the conscription of child soldiers.
Foday Sankoh, known as “Pa,” died in 2003 while in U.N. custody. Former Liberian President Charles Taylor is facing a special session of the Sierra Leonean court in The Hague, Netherlands.
The Wednesday verdict is the last for the Special Court in Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone. Around 500,000 people died during a decade’s long conflict in part due to the sale of so-called blood diamonds.
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FREETOWN, Sierra Leone (AP) — The rebels were known for asking their victims if they preferred “long sleeves” or “short sleeves.” They then cut off the hands of those who chose the first option and the full arm of those that picked the second.
On Wednesday, an international court modeled after the Nuremberg tribunal convicted three top Sierra Leone rebel leaders of crimes against humanity — the closest thing to justice in this West African nation of amputees, orphans and widows.
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