Sierra Leone prosecutors have lined up 138 witnesses to testify against nine defendants charged with war crimes for their alleged roles in a decade-long rebel war that ravaged the west African nation, a court source said Tuesday.

The source, who requested anonymity, said that start dates for the three trials had not yet been set but that the prosecution was prepared to begin early next month.

At a weekend pretrial conference with the three-judge trial chamber panel, prosecutor Luc Cote said the court was working on ways to protect the witnesses from any potential reprisals.

Many witnesses will testify under a pseudonym, while others may not appear in open court.

The UN-backed court, mandated under a joint agreement with the Sierra Leonean government, is seeking to try those who bear the greatest responsibility for atrocities committed during the second half of the war that was officially declared over in January 2002.

The court's three-year mandate is due to expire in June 2005, making it imperative for the processes to start soon, trial chamber president Judge Bankole Thompson noted during the weekend conference.

Defendants in custody represent three factions in what is considered among the most brutal wars in modern history: the Revolutionary United Front, rebels notorious for hacking off the limbs of civilians; renegade army officers who led a brief military junta as the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council; and the Civil Defence Forces or Kamajors, who fought alongside the Sierra Leone army.

"Your clients are entitled to a free and expeditious trial," Thompson told lawyers for the CDF defendants, whom many in Sierra Leone consider to be heroes for having beaten back the rebels.

Defence attorneys want trials to be delayed until September, and have argued that pretrial procedures have dragged along and also that the court presents a challenging legal precedent which requires more time.

The hybrid court is a first in Sierra Leone, melding national and international law.

It is also strapped for funds. Supported by donors led by the United States, it nevertheless faces a $20-million budget shortfall. Canada recently pledged one million dollars.

The indictment of Charles Taylor, Liberia's former president accused of arming and training the RUF in exchange for "blood" diamonds, has also held up proceedings at the court.

Taylor fled to Nigeria as part of a peace pact signed to end Liberia's 14 years of civil war. His hosts in exile have remained steadfast in their refusal to hand him over to the Sierra Leonean prosecutors despite an Interpol warrant and heavy international pressure.

But Thompson warned the prosecution that they would do well to focus on those defendants already in custody, saying: "A fair trial of the accused persons should take precedence over all considerations." - Sapa-AFP