Liberian rebel leader sentenced to 20 years in prison for war crimes including cannibalism in first such trial by Swiss court


Liberian rebel commander Alieu Kosiah has been handed a 20 year prison sentence over charges of rape, killings and even cannibalism in the first war crimes trial in a civilian court in Switzerland.
On Friday, the Swiss Federal Court found Kosiah guilty on all but four of the 25 charges he faced for his alleged actions while in the United Liberation Movement of Liberia for Democracy (ULIMO) rebel group. The court convicted him on war crimes including rape, killings and even cannibalism, after an incident in which he allegedly ate slices of a man’s heart.

The 46-year-old’s sentencing comes at the end of a seven-year legal process. Kosiah was first arrested in Switzerland, where he was living, in 2014 with Swiss authorities making use of a 2011 law that permits the prosecution of anyone for serious crimes, regardless of where they were committed.

The conviction marks one of the first successful prosecutions over the actions of rebel groups during the West African nation’s civil war, with Human Rights Watch (HRW) describing the judgment as a “landmark” event.


https://www.rt.com/news/526984-swiss...er-war-crimes/