The trial of former Liberian president Charles Taylor for war crimes has resumed in The Hague after a six-month delay.
Mr Taylor is accused of controlling militia that killed and raped thousands in Sierra Leone.
He is the first African head of state to appear before an international war crimes tribunal and was present in court to hear the prosecution's first witness, an international expert on conflict diamonds.
Prosecutors intend to call 144 witnesses and plan to wrap up their case in around eight months.
The former president is accused of trying to gain control of Sierra Leone's mineral wealth, particularly its diamond mines, and seeking to destabilise its government by supplying the Revolutionary United Front rebels.
The rebels went on a diamond-funded rampage of killing, mutilation and rape during the 1991-2001 civil war.
Mr Taylor denies the charges against him.
His trial before the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone was moved from Freetown in Sierra Leone to The Hague because there were fears it could destabilise the region.
