I ate children's hearts, ex-rebel says
Milton Blahyi, a former feared rebel commander in Liberia's brutal civil war, has admitted to taking part in human sacrifices as part of traditional ceremonies intended to ensure victory in battle.
Milton "General Butt Naked" Blahyi
Milton Blahyi fought Charles Taylor's forces in the war
He said the sacrifices "included the killing of an innocent child and plucking out the heart, which was divided into pieces for us to eat."
There had been numerous rumours of human sacrifices during the 1979-93 conflict but this is the first time anyone has admitted publicly to the practice.
Mr Blahyi, 37, is better known in Liberia as "General Butt Naked" because he went into combat with no clothes on, to scare the enemy.
He is now an Evangelist preacher, who prefers to use the name Joshua.
He was speaking to the BBC, after telling Liberia's Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) that his forces had killed 20,000 people.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7200101.stm
Blahyi now claims he would regularly sacrifice a victim before battle, saying, "Usually it was a small child, someone whose fresh blood would satisfy the devil." He explained to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer: "Sometimes I would enter under the water where children were playing. I would dive under the water, grab one, carry him under and break his neck. Sometimes I'd cause accidents. Sometimes I'd just slaughter them."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joshua_Blahyi