Search
  1. Home
  2. West Africa
  3. Sierra Leone

Former rebel leader claims innocence

    ABIDJAN

    Former Sierra Leonean rebel leader Foday Sankoh told a court in the capital, Freetown, on Monday that he had no case to answer in murder charges leveled against him, news organisations reported. The case has been adjourned again until 2 April.

    "I am totally innocent of all the charges," news organisations quoted the former Revolutionary United Front head as saying.

    It is the third time that Sankoh, along with dozens of other former rebels, has appeared in court since he was charged with murder and related offences on 4 March. The charges relate to an incident on 8 May 2000 when a peaceful demonstration outside Sankoh's house in Freetown turned violent and at least 20 people died. He was detained shortly after the incident and has been kept in an undisclosed location ever since.

    Sierra Leone's attorney general and justice minister, Solomon Berewa, asked for the latest adjournment in part because no lawyer in Sierra Leone has agreed to defend the rebels, AP reported him as saying. Berewa added that Sankoh's Nigerian lawyer, Edo Akanya, had been registered temporarily at the Sierra Leonean Bar Association.

    The RUF is widely accused of committing many atrocities including forced limb amputations, murder and rape during its decade-long war against successive governments. A separate international war crimes tribunal, currently being set up by the UN and the Sierra Leonean government in Freetown, is charged with bringing to justice those who bear the greatest responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity during the war.

    President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah formally declared the war over in early January.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

    Share this article

    Our ability to deliver compelling, field-based reporting on humanitarian crises rests on a few key principles: deep expertise, an unwavering commitment to amplifying affected voices, and a belief in the power of independent journalism to drive real change.

    We need your help to sustain and expand our work. Your donation will support our unique approach to journalism, helping fund everything from field-based investigations to the innovative storytelling that ensures marginalised voices are heard.

    Please consider joining our membership programme. Together, we can continue to make a meaningful impact on how the world responds to crises.

    Become a member of The New Humanitarian

    Support our journalism and become more involved in our community. Help us deliver informative, accessible, independent journalism that you can trust and provides accountability to the millions of people affected by crises worldwide.

    Join