Gibril Massaquoi


Former RUF commander and SierraLeone national, arrested in Finland in March 2020; accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity allgedly committed in Liberia. Gibril Massaquoi played an important role – as a key-witness – during the trial of warlord-turned-president Charles Taylor who was found guilty of war crimes and human rights violations in Sierra Leone and sentenced to 50 years in prison by the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL).

Latest news:

The trial of Gibril Masaquoi in Finland has started on February 1, 2021. Throughout the trial, Civitas Maxima publishes daily legal monitoring for audiences around the world to follow the case. The verdict of the Finnish court is expected in 2022.
 

Finnish Court To Hand Down Judgment In Early 2022:

Pirkanmaa Court To Hand Down Judgment In Gibril Massaquoi Case Early 2022
Source: GNN, Liberia
July 13, 2021

Interesting reflection: The following article was part of the special Op Ed section on Le Temps dedicated to international justice, with Civitas Maxima director Alain Werner serving as guest editor.

The Fight Against Impunity at the Heart of Swiss Foreign Policy
Source: Civitas Maxima
July 21, 2021

The article above is a translation of “La lutte contre l’impunité au cœur de la politique étrangère de la Suisse” originally posted on Le Temps on July 14, 2021.

The following press release published by Civitas Maxima serves as an example. For more press releases on the Massaquoi trial please visit the Civitas Maxima site.

31/03/21 [Liberia] Day 23: The Hearing of Witnesses 42, 43, and 44
The twenty-third day of public hearings resumed on March 31, 2021 in Monrovia, Liberia.
Source: Civitas Maxima – April 13, 2021

Liberian history in the making: groundbreaking decision regarding Gibril Massaquoi’s trialCivitas Maxima – February 1, 2021
French – Français – Communiqué de presse:
L’histoire du Libéria en marche : grande première au procès de Gibril Massaquoi

Universal jurisdiction: The Finnish revolution
February 1, 2021
JusticeInfo.Net – Fondation Hirondelle – Thierry Cruvellier
 

War Crimes Trial Coming to Liberian Soil
Liberia is set to host the first war crimes trial connected to the country’s civil war in February. 
The Pirkanmaa District Court in Finland announced Thursday that it will begin the trial of Gibril Massaquoi, a Sierra Leonean, for war crimes allegedly committed in Liberia in his role as a commander of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) between 2001 and 2002 next week. Later in February the court will move to Liberia and Sierra Leone to hear from “several dozen witnesses named in the case” in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea and visits to the scenes of the alleged crimes, the court said in a press release.
January 30, 2021
FrontPageAfrica, Monrovia, Liberia – James Harding Giahyue

Trial of former RUF commander set to begin before Finnish court
The trial of Sierra Leonean national and Tampere resident, Gibril Massaquoi, will begin on 1st February 2021 before the Pirkanmaa District Court in Finland, and is expected to last for several months.
Civitas Maxima – News, January 25, 2021 
French – Français – Communiqué de presse:
Début du procès d’un ancien commandant du RUF devant un tribunal finlandais
 

The Massaquoi Affair: Special Report on the Judas of Sierra Leone(Part 2) 
April 14, 2020
JusticeInfo.Net – Fondation Hirondelle – Thierry Cruvellier 

The Massaquoi Affair: Special Report on the Judas of Sierra Leone (Part 1) 
April 7, 2020
JusticeInfo.Net – Fondation Hirondelle – Thierry Cruvellier

A citizen of Sierra Leone arrested by NBI on suspicion of serious crimes in Liberia in 1999–2003
Poliisi, Police of Finland – March 11, 2020

Police arrest Sierra Leone war crimes suspect living in Finland
News Now Finland – March 11, 2020

Former RUF commander arrested in Finland over war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Liberia
Civitas Maxima – March 11, 2020Some background information on Gibril Massaquoi
Special Court for Sierra Leone, AFRC Trial, Update 58
Stanford Centre for Human Rights and International Justice
October 10, 2005
Report of Working Group 8 (Group coordinator: Gibril Massaaquoi)
February 25, 2010