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UN Pushes Liberia to Freeze Assets of Accused Warlord


Former Liberian President Charles Taylor is seen at the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone in Leidschendam, Netherlands, 05 Aug 2010
Former Liberian President Charles Taylor is seen at the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone in Leidschendam, Netherlands, 05 Aug 2010

The United Nations Security Council is stepping up pressure on Liberia to freeze the assets of accused former president Charles Taylor.

The 15-member Council on Friday approved a resolution on sanctions that aim to eliminate funds for conflicts through the sale of illegally mined diamonds.

Taylor allegedly used profits from so-called "blood diamonds" to fund years of civil war in Liberia and neighboring Sierra Leone.

The former Liberian president is facing 11 charges for allegedly instigating a rebel campaign of rape, murder and mutilation in neighboring Sierra Leone that killed more than 100,000 people during a decade-long civil war, which started in the late 1990s.

Taylor is currently on trial for war crimes in the Hague, the Netherlands.

The court has set February 8 for the prosecution and defense to start their concluding arguments.

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