Monrovia, Liberia
French troops airlifted American civilians out of Monrovia this week, as rebel fighters reached the outskirts of the Liberian capital. Special forces swooped down in Cougar military helicopters and stood guard with bazookas as U.S. aid workers and other Westerners were evacuated to a French ship waiting offshore. The long-simmering rebel insurgency against President Charles Taylor picked up steam last week when a U.N. court charged the president with war crimes for aiding Sierra Leone’s brutal rebels. Thousands of refugees from Sierra Leone who live in camps near Monrovia fled into the city as the fighting neared.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Gandhi arrests: Narendra Modi's 'vendetta' against India's oppositionThe Explainer Another episode threatens to spark uproar in the Indian PM's long-running battle against the country's first family
-
How the woke right gained power in the USUnder the radar The term has grown in prominence since Donald Trump returned to the White House
-
Codeword: April 24, 2025The Week's daily codeword puzzle
