War crimes prosecutor says wanted Taylor remains threat to West Africa News
War crimes prosecutor says wanted Taylor remains threat to West Africa

[JURIST] Exiled former President of Liberia Charles Taylor [PBS profile] will remain a threat to the entire West African region until he is tried and has said he will continue his efforts to assassinate Guinean President Lansana Conte [profile] according to David Crane [court profile], chief prosecutor for the Special Court for Sierra Leone [official website]. Taylor had attempted to assassinate Conte in January 2005 due to Conte's support of a rebel faction in Liberia, the Liberian United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) [profile]. In an interview Crane also stressed Taylor's potentially dangerous impact on the region in general, since Taylor even while in exile in Nigeria has has allegedly maintained contact with his political allies in Liberia and mobilized a network of warlords to terrorize West Africa. Despite pressure from the US and Europe, Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria has refused to hand Taylor over for trial under a Special Court indictment [PDF] until there is a request from the Liberian government that he do so. IRIN has more.

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