Blood diamond expert testifies against Charles Taylor

THE HAGUE, Jan. 7 (Xinhua) -- A blood diamond expert was called on Monday by the prosecution as the first witness to testify against former Liberian president Charles Taylor in his war crimes trial.

Ian Smillie, a Canadian expert on the trade in diamonds linked to conflicts or "blood diamonds," told the three-judge panel how the illegal diamond trading fueled the war in Sierra Leone.

Taylor, the first former African leader standing trial before an international tribunal, was charged with 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity for his involvement in the 10-year civil war in neighboring Sierra Leone, which ended in 2002.

He allegedly supported the rebel Revolutionary United Front (RUF) in Sierra Leone who committed murder, rape and mutilation of civilians, and arms trafficking and the use of child soldiers, aiming to gain control of the country's mineral wealth, particularly its diamond mines.

Smillie said diamonds were the primary funding source of RUF, which forced captives to work as slaves in diamond fields and initiated a campaign of terror to strengthen their grip of the treasure. According to Smillie, most the illicit diamonds were smuggled out of Sierra Leone through Liberia.

"Such illicit trade cannot be conducted without the permission and involvement of Liberian government officials at the highest levels," Smillie said.

Smillie said he interviewed Taylor as part of a U.N. investigation of arms smuggling in Liberia in 2000, in which Taylor acknowledged the possibility of Sierra Leone diamonds passing through Liberia, but denied involvement.

After Smillie, a victim of the Sierra Leone conflict and an insider once belonging to Taylor's inner circle will take the stand later this week.

Wearing a dark suit, Taylor, who refused to show up in the courtroom on the first day of his trial last June, appeared at the defendant's seat this time.

Taylor is tried by the U.N.-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone, which rented a courtroom from the Hague-based International Criminal Court to conduct the trial for security concerns.

The governments of Liberia and Sierra Leone fear that his trial in Sierra Leone could spark violence in Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone.

The trial is expected to be concluded by the end of 2009, which is certain to drag into appeal.