Amputee is last witness against Charles Taylor

Such amputations were the calling card of rebels during Sierra Leone's 11-year conflict.

Conteh, 59, said rebels hacked off his left hand with an ax in front of his wife and 4-year-old son. When the child screamed at them, the rebels got ready to amputate one of his hands, Conteh told judges.

"I said I would rather you cut off my second hand," he said. "I placed my hand (on a slab) and they hacked it twice."

Conteh was the last of 91 witnesses called by prosecutors. Many were victims of atrocities by rebels allegedly supported by Taylor during a conflict fueled by so-called "blood diamonds."

Others were from Taylor's inner circle who testified about his links to Sierra Leone's rebels, particularly the notorious Revolutionary United Front.

The trial started in June 2007 but was halted for six months after Taylor boycotted the opening, saying he could not get a fair trial, and then fired his lawyer. It resumed in January 2008.

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Well it probably slipped Robertson's mind, busy as he is in getting people to send in those checks, money orders and love offerings to support his cause. How the reverend found time to hook up with Taylor, I'll never know.

But in May 1999, Robertson, through Freedom Gold Limited, an offshore company registered in the Cayman Islands but based at CBN headquarters in Virginia Beach, signed an agreement with Taylor and key cabinet members allowing the for-profit Freedom Gold to explore and receive mining rights in southeastern Liberia, where gold is believed to be in the ground.

It's a great deal for Liberia, which is now an economic basket case thanks to the long civil war and Taylor's corruption. It's also good for Freedom Gold, which was formed by Robertson in 1998. Liberia -- and for all practical purposes we're talking Taylor -- gains 10 percent ownership of Freedom Gold.

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Hatuey said:

Amputee is last witness against Charles Taylor - Yahoo! News



Pat Robertson's Gold (washingtonpost.com)



Will America's anti-terror goon squads come out and demand that Pat Robertson also be tried and sent to jail for supporting government back terrorism in Liberia and Sierra Leone? I doubt it. But this case makes for an excellent exercise in consistency. I find it quite peculiar that Pat Robertson has been able to avoid this even though his 'ventures' helped fund the terror spread by Taylor and his men.

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