Intro

In 2008, the former President of Liberia, Charles Taylor, faced a courtroom in the Hague accused of war crimes.

His trial would last more than three years at the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone, and involve witness appearances by the supermodel Naomi Campbell and the Hollywood actress Mia Farrow.

The 11 charges included rape, murder, violence and the use of child soldiers during the Sierra Leone civil war. It was claimed that Taylor traded in arms and ammunition in return for so-called blood diamonds.

Chief prosecutor Brenda Hollis speaks to Jane Wilkinson about the trial which ended when Taylor was jailed for 50 years for aiding and abetting crimes against humanity. It’s a story that includes descriptions of violence and sexual assault.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there.

For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.

Recent episodes explore everything from how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken.

We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the moment Reagan and Gorbachev met in Geneva, Haitian singer Emerante de Pradines’ life and Omar Sharif’s legendary movie entrance in Lawrence of Arabia.

You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, like the invention of a stent which has saved lives around the world; the birth of the G7; and the meeting of Maldives’ ministers underwater. We cover everything from World War Two and Cold War stories to Black History Month and our journeys into space.

(Photo: Charles Taylor in court, 2010. Credit: Vincent Jannink/AFP via Getty Images)