Former Liberian President Charles Taylor goes on trial Monday for allegedly orchestrating unspeakable atrocities in Sierra Leone's bloody civil war, becoming the first African leader to face justice at an international tribunal. Prosecutors allege that, in return for diamonds illegally mined in Sierra Leone, Taylor armed, funded and controlled rebels who murdered, raped and mutilated civilians before looting and torching their villages in a campaign of terror aimed at destabilizing the government in Freetown. Taylor, 59, who has pleaded not guilty to 11 charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment if convicted. His trial is expected to last 18 months, according to a report of the Associated Press.
