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Full Article Images of March Follow Reuters Facebook Twitter RSS YouTube Read George Zimmerman: Prelude to a shooting 25 Apr 2012 Tens of thousands sing in protest at Breivik trial 12:00pm EDT Hague court convicts Taylor of crimes in Sierra Leone | 11:22am EDT Brazil sex worker may sue U.S. embassy over injuries 7:28am EDT Euro zone woes keep banks wary after Q1 bounce | 11:21am EDT Discussed 324 Washington sues Florida city over firefighter tests 302 George Zimmerman: Prelude to a shooting 99 Nugent says had ”solid” meeting with Secret Service Watched ExoHand gets to grips with future of automation Tue, Apr 24 2012 Mitt Romney says he would boot Ben Bernanke - The Trail Tue, Apr 24 2012 U.N. promotes cooking stove revolution in Nigeria Mon, Apr 23 2012 Pictures Reuters Photojournalism Our day's top images, in-depth photo essays and offbeat slices of life. See the best of Reuters photography. See more | Photo caption Beyonce: Most beautiful woman Beyonce is named the world's most beautiful woman of 2012 by People magazine. Slideshow Poaching in Africa Poaching is surging, driven by the growing purchasing power of Asia's newly affluent classes. Slideshow Hague court convicts Taylor of crimes in Sierra Leone Tweet Share this Email Print Factbox Charles Taylor convicted The Hague 11:22am EDT Related News Taylor's victims, critics soothed by court conviction 10:18am EDT Analysis & Opinion Santeria animal sacrifice case underpins Guantanamo legal challenge SEC says “social capitalist” Ponzi scheme bilked U.S. Christians Related Topics World » United Nations » Related Video Hague court convicts Charles Taylor of war crimes in Sierra Leone 9:10am EDT 1 of 8. Former Liberian President Charles Taylor looks down as he waits for the start of a hearing to receive a verdict in a court room of the Special Court for Sierra Leone in Leidschendam, near The Hague, April 26, 2012. Credit: Reuters/Peter Dejong/Pool By Thomas Escritt and Anthony Deutsch THE HAGUE | Thu Apr 26, 2012 11:22am EDT THE HAGUE (Reuters) - A United Nations-backed court convicted former Liberian president Charles Taylor of war crimes and crimes against humanity, the first time a head of state has been found guilty by an international tribunal since the Nazi trials at Nuremberg. The first African leader to stand trial for war crimes, Taylor had been charged with 11 counts of murder, rape, conscripting child soldiers and sexual slavery during intertwined wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone, when more than 50,000 people were killed. The warlord-turned-president was accused of directing Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels in a campaign of terror to plunder Sierra Leone's diamond mines for profit and to obtain weapons. On Thursday, the court ruled that Taylor, 64, was criminally responsible for aiding and abetting the crimes, and found him guilty of providing weapons, food, medical supplies, fuel and equipment to forces in Sierra Leone which committed atrocities. But it said he was not guilty of either ordering or planning the atrocities - a disappointment for the prosecution and a decision which could eventually result in a lighter sentence. "The trial chamber, having already found the accused guilty of aiding and abetting, does not find the accused also instigated these crimes," Presiding Judge Richard Lussick said. Wearing a dark blue suit and maroon tie, Taylor looked calm and subdued as the presiding judge took more than two hours to read out the charges, evidence and final ruling. The litany of gruesome crimes covered rapes and enslavement, beheadings and disembowellings, amputations and other mutilations carried out by child soldiers notorious for being high on drugs and dressed in fright wigs. "A civilian was killed in full public view and then his body was disemboweled and his intestines stretched across the road to make a checkpoint. Women and children were raped in public, people were burned alive in their homes," the judge said. "The purpose of these atrocities was to instill terror in the civilian population." And in return for providing arms and ammunition for the conflict, the judge recounted how Taylor had received "blood diamonds", as the stones from Sierra Leone's conflict zones were known, including a 45-carat diamond and two 25-carat diamonds. The trial attracted international attention, not just because of Taylor himself but because supermodel Naomi Campbell was called as a witness by the prosecution in an attempt to show that Taylor was knowingly trading weapons for diamonds. The prosecution said Taylor had sent uncut diamonds to Campbell's hotel room after a dinner given by Nelson Mandela, attended by both her and Taylor. She told the court she had no idea who had sent her the diamonds, which she called "dirty little pebbles". POWERFUL MESSAGE Human rights groups and victims welcomed the court's decision, with some saying it would serve as a strong warning to other leaders responsible for atrocities in conflict zones. "Taylor's conviction sends a powerful message that even those in the highest-level positions can be held to account for grave crimes," Elise Keppler, senior counsel for Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. "Not since Nuremberg has an international or hybrid war crimes court issued a judgment against a current or former head of state. This is a victory for Sierra Leonean victims, and all those seeking justice when the worst abuses are committed." A sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 16, with a decision expected later that month. Court sources said the judges had earlier been in disagreement over the verdict and were not speaking to each other at the end. Carsten Stahn, professor of international criminal law at the University of Leiden, said the decision to convict unanimously was a surprise. "There have been rumors of conflicts between the judges in the trial chamber, which is partly why it's taken so long to reach a verdict," he said. El Hadji Malick Sow, who as alternate judge sat through the six years of the trial but was excluded from deliberations, sought to express a dissenting opinion at the end. "The guilt of the accused from the evidence provided in this trial is not proved beyond reasonable doubt," he said, remaining in the chamber after his colleagues had left and his microphone had been switched off. Victims were in no doubt about the conviction. "I'm so happy that justice has been done," said Alhaji Jusu Jarka, 46, who had both hands amputated during an attack on Freetown on January 6, 1999. Standing outside the special court in Freetown, he told Reuters he hoped Taylor would get "100 or more years" when sentenced. Taylor has denied the charges, insisting he tried to bring peace to the region and arguing his trial was a politically motivated conspiracy by Western nations. But the judge said that "the accused was publicly promoting peace, while privately providing arms to the RUF," adding that "There was a constant flow ... of diamonds from Sierra Leone to the accused, often in exchange for arms and ammunition." Liberian Senator Sando Johnson, a family spokesman, said: "We will not give up in this fight and we will not give up this struggle. We are going to stand by Mr. Taylor until death do us part." At the start of the hearing, Taylor seemed relaxed, waving at some people sitting in the public gallery, and separated from the windowless trial chamber by a thick pain of glass. Later, as the presiding judge's reading of the judgment appeared to swing against Taylor, the former president clasped his hands more tensely in front of him. Taylor, a former Baptist who converted to the Jewish faith, is one of just a handful of former leaders who have appeared before the international courts. The International Criminal Court, also in The Hague, is pursuing several investigations with mixed success. Last year it arrested former Ivory Coast president Laurent Gbagbo, who is charged with individual responsibility on counts of crimes against humanity -- murder, rape and other forms of sexual violence, persecution, and other inhuman acts. It issued an arrest warrant for Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, son of the country's late leader, but is caught in a battle with the Libyan authorities over where Saif, who was captured last year but remains in Libyan hands, should be tried. Former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic died in The Hague in 2006 before the war crimes tribunal for former Yugoslavia could reach its verdict. The Taylor case was closely watched for its security implications, with a U.S. diplomat warning in the WikiLeaks cables that if Taylor was acquitted or given a light sentence, his return to Liberia could threaten "a fragile peace". Taylor's trial was moved to The Hague in June 2006 due to fears that a trial in Sierra Leone's capital Freetown could kindle unrest in Sierra Leone or Liberia. On Thursday, the U.S. State Department welcomed the verdict. "Today's judgment was an important step toward delivering justice and accountability for victims, restoring peace and stability in the country and the region, and completing the Special Court for Sierra Leone's mandate to prosecute those persons who bear the greatest responsibility for the atrocities committed in Sierra Leone," it said in statement. (Additional reporting by Simon Akam in Freetown, Clair MacDougall and Alphonso Toweh in Monrovia, and Bienvenu Bakumanya in Kinshasa; Writing by Sara Webb; Editing by Alison Williams, Vicki Allen and Giles Elgood) World United Nations Tweet this Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/ Comments (6) DCClark wrote: Edition: U.S. Africa Arabic Argentina Brazil Canada China France Germany India Italy Japan Latin America Mexico Russia Spain United Kingdom Back to top Reuters.com Business Markets World Politics Technology Opinion Money Pictures Videos Site Index Legal Bankruptcy Law California Legal New York Legal Securities Law Support & Contact Support Corrections Connect with Reuters Twitter Facebook LinkedIn RSS Podcast Newsletters Mobile About Privacy Policy Terms of Use AdChoices Copyright Our Flagship financial information platform incorporating Reuters Insider An ultra-low latency infrastructure for electronic trading and data distribution A connected approach to governance, risk and compliance Our next generation legal research platform Our global tax workstation Thomsonreuters.com About Thomson Reuters Investor Relations Careers Contact Us Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. 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