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A special war crimes court in Sierra Leone has indicted and issued an arrest warrant for Liberian President Charles Taylor, accusing him of "bearing the greatest responsibility for war crimes, crimes against humanity and serious violations of international humanitarian law" in connection with his backing of rebel groups during Sierra Leone's 10-year civil war.
The United Nations already has sanctioned Taylor for arms-trafficking and banned him from traveling beyond Liberia. However, he was in Ghana on June 4 -- in peace talks with rebel groups that are waging war in Liberia -- when he was notified of the war crimes charges. He returned immediately to Monrovia.
The war crimes indictment is the latest in a series of events that weigh against the embattled president. Taylor, who led a rebellion to seize Monrovia in the mid-1990s, faces opposition on all sides -- both domestically and within the region -- has lost his external sponsors and now is an international fugitive. The president might hold on to power for a while longer -- but not very long. Sensing that Taylor is at the end of his rope, the opposition now will begin moving in for the kill.
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