Word: diamond
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...equate Sierra Leone?s murderous rebels with Nelson Mandela?s African National Congress. But even without Jesse Jackson, negotiations inevitably involve give and take, and the rebels' call for a halt to any U.N. or government counteroffensive reflects their primary concern to maintain control of Sierra Leone's diamond fields to the south and east. Indeed, it was U.N. attempts to disarm the RUF in those areas, in line with last year's peace deal, that sparked the latest outbreak of violence. Most observers believe Sierra Leone's troubles will not end as long as the rebels remain in control...
...nearly a decade, hacking the limbs off countless civilians in a blood-soaked quest for power. Sick of the slaughter, members of the international community brokered a peace pact that last July ultimately gave the rebels amnesty, a share in government power and a piece of the country's diamond wealth. It apparently wasn't enough, so violence has erupted again in poor, shattered Sierra Leone. And this time it has engulfed the very U.N. troops sent to monitor the peace. Soldiers from the unrepentant R.U.F. swooped down on U.N. personnel across the tiny country last week. By Friday, four...
...tortured and mutilated an estimated 100,000 more. The peace deal signed by the government and the R.U.F. required Sankoh's 45,000 men to surrender their weapons in exchange for Cabinet seats in a government of national unity. They have dragged their feet, and now, financed by diamond smuggling, they roam unchallenged...
Villa profited handsomely from the business. For himself, he collected cigarette speedboats and vintage autos and racing cars, from a 1957 Cadillac to a 1990 Ferrari. For his wife, he collected jewelry--a $22,000 Rolex watch, a three-carat $44,000 wedding ring and $9,000 diamond earrings...
...become infamous in the past year for recently revealed human rights abuses. Fueled by a diamond smuggling operation, the RUF has forced natives to hunt for diamonds. The RUF has stormed civilian villages and amputated legs and arms of civilian men who are prominent in the community...