BBC — International judges have found former Liberian leader Charles Taylor guilty of aiding and abetting war crimes during the Sierra Leone civil war, at his trial in The Hague. Taylor has been on trial at the Special Court for Sierra Leone for almost five years. He was accused of backing rebels who killed tens of thousands during Sierra Leone's 1991-2002 civil war. But he was cleared of ordering their crimes. Human rights groups described the judgment as historic. "This is an incredibly significant decision," Elise Keppler from the campaign group Human Rights Watch told the BBC. "Today is a landmark moment." Right group Amnesty International said the verdict sent an important message to all high-ranking state officials.