Sierra Leone warlord confirmed dead

Sierra Leone's president has confirmed that the man killed by Liberian troops on Tuesday was the feared warlord Sam Bockarie.

President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah said the Sierra Leonean ambassador to Monrovia had positively identified the body - after initially casting doubt on the identity of the corpse.

Mr Kabbah said the body would be inspected by the International Committee of the Red Cross before being flown back to Sierra Leone.

Mr Bockarie was wanted for alleged war crimes during Sierra Leone's civil war, including murder and cutting limbs off civilians.

SAM BOCKARIE

Indicted for alleged war crimes

Accused of killing Ivory Coast rebel last month

Former dancing champion

Obituary

He was a senior commander of the rebel Revolutionary United Front (RUF) during the 10-year civil war that ended in 2002.

The United-Nations backed Special Court for Sierra Leone indicted him in March.

The Liberian Government says Mr Bockarie, 40, was shot dead by its troops while trying to cross into Liberia from Ivory Coast.

Liberia accused

Sierra Leone's tribunal initially disputed Liberia's report of Mr Bockarie's death, accusing its president, Charles Taylor, of harbouring the rebel leader.

"We will not be satisfied until the body is returned to Sierra Leone as we still want... to conduct a forensic examination and to make a positive identification," said Alan White, the court's chief investigator.

Last week, the court warned Mr Taylor he could himself be indicted unless he handed Mr Bockarie over.

It has also accused him of protecting another alleged war criminal, former junta leader Johnny Paul Koroma.

Liberia has long stood accused of arming and funding Sierra Leonean rebels in return for the "blood diamonds" mined by them.

President Taylor has consistently denied such charges.

On Wednesday, Liberia hit out angrily at the UN after the Security Council voted unanimously to extend sanctions that aim to punish Liberia for its alleged destabilisation of neighbouring countries.

The council also agreed to ban imports of Liberian timber products in July unless Liberia shows it is acting to quell violence in the region.

At least 30,000 people were killed and thousands mutilated in the Sierra Leone conflict, which ended with the help of the UK, the former colonial power, and a United Nations peacekeeping mission.