Nigeria, March 7 -- On day two of Kunti Kamara's appeal against his 2022 conviction for war crimes and crimes against humanity, Mr Kamara's lawyers introduced a new line of defence that could upturn proceedings against the former United Liberation Movement of Liberia for Democracy (Ulimo) commander.

The defence is now claiming that Mr Kamara, who listed his birth date as 1974 when he registered for asylum in the Netherlands in 2001, was actually born in 1978.

If that were true he would have been 15 when the crimes for which he was convicted, took place in Lofa in 1993. In France accused perpetrators must be tried in a juvenile court if they were under 18 when the crimes were committed.

The French prosecution and the first trial against...