Liberia's Charles Taylor leaves The Hague

  1. Posted on Friday 14 May 2010 - 09:30
    Murtala
    Image of Murtala
    Murtala Kamara Mohammed, AfricaNews reporter in Freetown, Sierra Leone
    Former Liberian leader Charles Taylor, who is standing trial at The Hague's International Criminal Court, is being moved to a newly constructed courtroom in nearby Leidschendam. The court is built for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), the United Nations backed court announced on Thursday.
    Taylor
    The last hearing of the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL) in the ICC ended on Wednesday.

    According to a press statement from the SCSL, “The move, under a memorandum of understanding between the Special Court and the STL, is an acknowledgement of the increasing scheduling difficulties with the ICC trials.”

    It added: “Under the agreement, the Special Court will pay for all trial- related costs. Mr. Taylor’s trial continues to be conducted by the Special Court.”

    The former warlord is standing trial on 11 counts of alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity. His trial was transferred to The Hague from Freetown in 2006 amidst concerns that it might spark instability in the region.

    “We appreciate the ICC’s cooperation and support for the use of their facilities over the past three year,” SCSL Registrar Binta Mansaray said. She continued “the scheduling challenges are a sign of the ICC’s progress in implementing their own mandate. We wish them success in their work.”

    The SCSL is an independent tribunal established jointly by the United Nations and the Government of Sierra Leone to try those that bear the greatest responsibility for atrocities committed in Sierra Leone after the 30th November 1996 Lome Peace Accord.

Latest News

  1. OPINION: Welcome to African Green Revolution24/05For the past century and a half, Africa has tried various agricultural approaches without much success.
  2. Egyptians vote in historic election23/05Egyptians began voting freely on Wednesday for the first time to pick their president in a wide open election that pits Islamists against men who serv…
  3. Africa Day 2012 - a moment for reflection and…22/0525th May is Africa Day. For many years it has been a celebration of African unity. It dates back to 1963 when the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) …
  4. South Africa's African agenda21/05The Deputy President of the Republic of South Africa, Kgalema Mothlanthe paid a rare visit to Ghana in April at the invitation of John Dramani Mahama …
  5. Women struggle to rinse hunger, poverty stains21/05Just looking at her one clearly appreciates that she is old and frail therefore in need of support for food, clothing and shelter to live comfortably …
  6. Climate Climate change affects migratory birds…21/05Changes in the climate globally have affected the movement of both migratory and resident species of birds, Nature Uganda has said.
  7. Ghana: Foreign retailers cited for currency…18/05The Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) is attributing the sharp depreciation of the Ghana cedi against major currencies to the illegal activiti…
  8. Kenya: Community radio brings succour to…18/05Korogocho, a slum in northeastern Nairobi with 100,000 inhabitants, had many of the ingredients for a political explosion similar to those that rocked…
  9. Veld fires 'flame' Zimbabwe's…16/05Over the years, Zimbabwe has experienced the scourge of veld fires destroying property worth thousands of dollars.
  10. Liberia commends ECOWAS for support14/05The induction training of pioneer Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Volunteers for Liberia kicked off in Monrovia, with the Deputy Mi…
  11. Vanishing Lake Chad puts 30m lives at risk14/05As you approach the Lake Chad basin from Maiduguri, in north-eastern Nigeria, the evidence of despair is telling.
  12. Heavy rains cause havoc in Kenya14/05Heavy Rainfall continued to wreak havoc across the country leading to the suspension of relief food in some parts of the country as most roads in Turk…
  13. Zimbabwe: Growth points lie dormant14/05The Zimbabwean government mooted the concept of growth points in the 1980s as a means of decongesting cities and towns.
  14. Sierra Leone improves in infant mortality11/05Sierra Leone has improved in infant mortality cases according to Save the Children- World Motherhood index 2012 report. The West Africa country descri…
  15. Zimbabwe: Resettled farmers fail to utilize…10/05Resettled farmers in Zimbabwe are failing to utilize land due to inadequate farming inputs and lack of resources.
News archive