Former Liberian Rebel Leader Receives 30-Year Prison Term From French Court

On Wednesday, March 27, a French court sentenced former Liberian rebel commander Kunti Kamara to 30 years in prison for violence against civilians and complicity in crimes against humanity.

The crimes occurred in Lofa county, north-western Liberia, between 1993 and 1994, during the First Liberian Civil War.

Civitas Maxima reports that during the hearings, the Court heard 22 witnesses, 9 civil parties, and 5 specialists. The Civitas Maxima organisation oversees a network of national and international lawyers and detectives who work for the benefit of victims of international crimes.

Kamara was given a life sentence in prison following a first trial in Paris in 2022.

His lawyers welcomed the shorter sentence but maintained their client’s innocence.

The 49-year-old was arrested in France in 2018.

He was the regional leader of the United Liberation Movement of Liberia for Democracy (ULIMO), a rebel group that fought former President Charles Taylor’s National Patriotic Front.

Melissa Enoch