Author: Prue Clarke

PARIS, France—The lawyer for the ten plaintiffs who filed a formal complaint against Kunti Kamara, an accused Liberian warlord, says she’s hopeful he will be found guilty when the jury retires to consider their verdict next week. The defendant, 47, faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted.

Kunti Kamara with a translator Credit: Leslie Lumeh/New Narratives By Anthony Stephens with New Narratives PARIS, France—Kunti Kamara has lashed out at the ten plaintiffs in his trial for crimes against humanity here calling them “criminals” and professing his innocence on charges of cannibalism, torture, rape, murder and forced labor. Kamara, 47, has conceded he was a commander with the United Liberation Movement of Liberia for Democracy (Ulimo) during its four-month occupation of Foya in Lofa County, Liberia in 1993. Dozens of witnesses have told the court harrowing stories of atrocities they claim Kamara committed himself or directed others to…

Kamara looks on as his lawyers discuss strategy in his Paris trial Credit: Leslie Lumeh/New Narratives PARIS, France – The former Ulimo commander Kunti Kamara, on trial here for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Liberia’s civil wars, had his first chance to make a substantive response to the allegations made against him in the first five days of this trial.

PARIS, France – The trial of Kunti Kamara for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Paris took a dramatic turn late Friday as the presiding judge in the trial asked a witness if the man he had described committing multiple atrocities, including killing four members of his family, was in the court. “Yes,” said the victim turning to look directly at Kamara who was in a protective glass box. “That is him.” The victim was standing less than 10 feet from Kamara who was also asked to stand. Neither man betrayed what must have been deep turmoil at, what…

Kunti Kamara is confronted by an alleged victim in day 5 of his Paris trial. Credit: Leslie Lumeh/New Narratives By Prue Clarke PARIS, France – The trial of Kunti Kamara for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Paris took a dramatic turn late Friday as the presiding judge in the trial asked a witness if the man he had described committing multiple atrocities, including killing four members of the victim’s family, was in the court. “Yes,” said the victim turning to look directly at Kamara who was in a protective glass box. “That is him.” The victim was standing…

By Prue Clarke with New Narratives PARIS, France – Day four of the war crimes trial of Kunti Kamara looked closely at the investigations in France and Liberia that produced evidence prosecutors are using in the case against the former commander of the United Liberation Movement for Democracy in Liberia. Two Liberian leads in the investigation – Luther Sumo, a Lofa prosecutor and Patrick Massaly, Deputy Police Commissioner – testified by video link from Monrovia. They both said that once they had the case material supplied by French investigators they set about finding alleged victims of Kamara in Foya in…

PARIS, France – Day three of the war crimes trial of Liberian Kunti Kamara was all about setting the scene of Liberia’s civil war and the history that led up to it for the jury of six French citizens and three judges who will decide this case. The court heard from three witnesses including French photographer Patrick Robert whose photographs took the war to the world stage and John Stewart, a former commissioner of Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

PARIS, France – It didn’t take long for prosecutors to catch Kunti Kamara in multiple traps in day two of his war crimes trial Tuesday. The former colonel with the United Liberation Movement of Liberia insisted repeatedly that he had not been trying to flee Europe when he was arrested in January 2020 carrying a falsified Guinean identity card and a bus ticket to Portugal from where, prosecutors alleged, he intended to get a flight to Guinea.

This piece may appear in the news pages but the subject is news to no one: The business model supporting journalism in Liberia is broken.

Joshua Blahyi “General Butt Naked” appeared in court today to refute claims he bribed witnesses By Gerald C. Koinyeneh with New Narratives MONROVIA, Liberia – One of the men accused of bribing and tampering with witnesses in the ongoing war crimes trial of Gibril Massaquoi rejected the allegations in court on Wednesday. Joshua Milton Blahyi, also known by his war name, “General Butt Naked”, was accused of colluding with Hassan Bility to bribe witnesses in Mr. Massaquoi’s ongoing trial by the court from Finland, and other high profile cases tried in the United States and Europe involving people connected to…