Leone rebel chief in Liberia for talks on leader

MONROVIA, Liberia (Reuters) - The field commander of Sierra Leone's rebels has arrived in Liberia to discuss with fellow fighters who should succeed jailed leader Foday Sankoh, Liberian military sources said on Monday.

"(Issa Kamara) Sessay got into town on Saturday to see about ways of electing a new leadership," one source said.

Sankoh is being held by the Sierra Leone government, which says he should stand trial for war crimes. It has been encouraging the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) to appoint a new leader with whom it can negotiate.

Former field commander Sam Bockarie is among RUF fighters based in Liberia. He fell out with Sankoh last December.

A July 1999 peace deal to end Sierra Leone's civil war unraveled in May this year when the rebels took up arms again.

The nomination of a new leader would give the government and the United Nations someone with authority with whom they could negotiate. The U.N. has a peacekeeping force in the country with an authorized strength of 13,000 troops.

Liberian President Charles Taylor has had close links with Sankoh's RUF since the start of Sierra Leone's civil war in 1991. He has been accused by Western governments of assisting the RUF by selling diamonds mined in rebel-controlled areas.

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