Liberia's former President Charles Taylor has blamed an 'intelligence plot' involving the British Government for the fact that he is standing trial for war crimes charges in The Hague.

According to a report on the News24 site, Taylor claimed it was organisations like private military company Sandline, not him, that brought arms into Liberia's neighbour Sierra Leone, where he is accused of having fuelled war by arming the rebel Revolutionary United Front (RUF) in exchange for so-called 'blood diamonds'. The warlord has been on trial since January 2008 on 11 charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity stemming from the brutal 1991-2001 civil war in neighbouring Sierra Leone.
Full report on the News24 site