NewsTracker Answers for week of June 04, 2012

Q: Liberia's ex-President Charles Taylor has been sentenced to 50 years in jail by a UN-backed war crimes court. Where is Liberia on this map?

Circle the area on this map


Q: Taylor was found guilty of aiding and abetting rebels who committed atrocities in neighboring Sierra Leone during the 1991-2002 civil war. Sierra Leone is . . .

A. Northeast of Liberia

B. Southeast of Liberia

C. Southwest of Liberia

D. Northwest of Liberia


D. Liberia is bordered by Sierra Leone to the northwest, Guinea to the northeast, Cote d'Ivoire to the east and southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the southwest.


Q: What did Taylor get in exchange for providing arms and both logistical and moral support to the Sierra Leone rebels?

A. Absolutely nothing

B. Blood diamonds

C. Counterinsurgency aid

D. Dispute gold


B. Taylor was accused of trading weapons for blood diamonds – diamonds mined in a war zone and and sold to finance a civil war, an invading army's war efforts, or a warlord's activity. Also known as conflict diamonds, the trade is most common in Africa where about two-thirds of the world's diamonds are extracted.


Q: Taylor became the first former head of state to be convicted of war crimes by an international court since the Nuremburg trials. Who was tried at Nuremburg?

A. Nazis

B. Imperialists

C. Communists

D. Anarchists


A. The Nuremberg Trials of defeated Nazi German leaders were conducted by the winning Allied forces after World War II. Among the legal principles established by the trials was that someone acting as a head of state is not exempted from responsibility under international law. Also, no one can escape punishment for war crimes just because they were following orders of a superior.


Q: Taylor's case was heard in The Hague for fear that a trial in Sierra Leone could destabilize the region. Where is The Hague?

A. Germany

B. Britain

C. Netherlands

D. Denmark


C. The Dutch government agreed to have the court meet in the Netherlands only if Taylor would serve any sentence in another country. He will serve any prison term in Britain but will be held in The Hague until the results of his appeal - a process that could last up to six months.