The former corporal who ignited an eleven-year war in Sierra Leone

History · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Foday Sankoh was a former military wireless operator who transformed into the leader of a brutal rebel insurgency. Backed by Liberian forces, his Revolutionary United Front plunged Sierra Leone into a decade of violence that displaced half a million people, leaving a legacy defined by conflict and failed peace.

Born in 1937 to a farming family in Northern Sierra Leone, Foday Saybana Sankoh followed a path that led from the military to militant leadership. After joining the Royal West African Forces in 1956, where he trained as a cameraman and wireless operator, he eventually reached the rank of corporal. His trajectory shifted toward rebellion in 1971 when he was imprisoned for seven years for participating in a coup plot against the government of Siaka Stevens.

During the 1980s, Sankoh traveled to Libya to receive training under Muammar Gaddafi. By 1991, he returned to Sierra Leone to launch the Revolutionary United Front. Supported by Charles Taylor and the Liberian NPFL, Sankoh initiated a civil war that lasted until 2002. The conflict was devastating, resulting in an estimated 50,000 deaths and forcing more than 500,000 people to flee into neighboring countries. The scale of the humanitarian crisis underscored the volatility of the region during this period.

Sankoh’s leadership was marked by instability and shifting alliances. Although he was arrested in Nigeria in 1997 on weapons charges, he was released by July 1999 to participate in the Lomé peace agreement. However, the accord was marred by repeated violations, casting doubt on his actual control over his forces and his sincerity in seeking peace. In May 2000, after an angry mob surrounded his villa in Freetown, he was placed in protective custody.

Sankoh remained in detention until his death on 29 July 2003. He passed away in a hospital from complications related to a stroke while awaiting trial. Following his death, David Crane, the chief prosecutor for the UN-backed war crimes court, remarked that Sankoh had received a peaceful end that he had denied to countless others throughout the brutal civil war.

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