Isaac Saye Musa (also spelt Musah, Mussah or Mesahn; died 2008) was a

Liberia Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to Guinea–Liberia border, its north, Ivory Coast to Ivory Coast–Lib ...

n military official and politician. Musa was one of the top field commanders of

National Patriotic Front of Liberia The National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) was a Liberian rebel group that initiated and participated in the First Liberian Civil War from 24 December 1989 – 2 August 1997. The NPFL emerged out of rising ethnic tensions and civil unrest du ...

(NPFL) in the

First Liberian Civil War The First Liberian Civil War was the first of Second Liberian Civil War, two civil wars within the West African nation of Liberia which lasted between 1989 and 1997. President Samuel Doe's regime of totalitarianism and widespread Political cor ...

. He served in government functions in the transitional governments during the 1990s. A noted loyalist of Charles Taylor, Musa would eventually fall out of favour with Taylor.

From AFL to NPFL

Musa belonged to the

Gio people The Dan or Mano-Dan are a Mande ethnic group from northwestern Ivory Coast and neighbouring Liberia. There are approximately members of the group and their largest settlement is Man, Ivory Coast. Neighboring peoples include the Krahn, Kpelle ...

. He was an officer in the

Armed Forces of Liberia The Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) are the armed forces of the Republic of Liberia. Tracing its origins to a militia that was formed by the first black colonists in what is now Liberia, it was founded as the Liberian Frontier Force in 1908, and r ...

in the early 1980s, reaching the rank of

First Lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

of the Military Police.Robert Kappel, Werner Korte.
Human Rights Violations in Liberia, 1980-1990: A Documentation
''. Informationszentrum Afrika, 1990. p. 286 He was detained for a period after the 1985 failed coup d'état attempt, and went into exile after being released. He joined Charles Taylor's NPFL and received guerrilla training in

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

. Musa was part of the NPFL contingent that entered Liberia on December 24, 1989, sparking the outbreak of the First Liberian Civil War. Within the NPFL Musa was named general for the NPFL forces, and acted as Battlegroup Commander at NPFL bases at

Roberts International Airport Roberts International Airport , informally also known as ''Robertsfield'', is an international airport in the West African nation of Liberia. Located near the town of Harbel in Margibi County, the single runway airport is about outside of the ...

and Kakata. As of 1992 he served as the Joint Chief of Staff for the NPFL.

In government

On October 20, 1993, NPFL named Musa as new vice chair of the Council of State (to become the executive branch of the Liberian National Transitional Government), replacing Dorothy Musuleng-Cooper.Janet Fleischman.
Human Rights and The Civil War in Liberia
''. ''Liberian Studies Journal'', 1994Ichiro Mashima
リベリア内戦史資料（1989～1997)
The Council of State, with Musa as one of vice chairmen, was installed on March 7, 1994.''The Inquirer''.

''Joseph Saye Guannu.
Liberian Civics
''. Herald Publishing, 2004. p. 89 Commenting on Musa's entry into the provisional presidency of the country, journalist Gabriel I. H. Williams argued that " usuleng-Cooperwas also replaced, as deputy chair of the state council by the NPFL's notorious battle group commander, Isaac Musa ..Musa, one of the most feared NPFL warriors who prided in calling himself the "Red Devil," happened to be one of the most erratic persons around during the crisis." Musa's arrival to the capital Monrovia was met with tensions from displaced communities from

Nimba County Nimba County is a Counties of Liberia, county in northeastern Liberia that shares borders with the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire in the East and the Republic of Guinea in the Northwest. Its capital city is Sanniquellie and its most populous city is ...

. As a Council of State member Musa repeatedly appealed for reconciliation of Nimba County communities. Musa took part in the

Akosombo Akosombo is a small town in the south of the Asuogyaman District, Eastern Region, Ghana with notable street names of some African countries in the sub-region like Ghana, Congo, Namibia, Lagos-town, and Freetown. It is occupied by people of ...

peace negotiations later in 1994. Musa remained in the Council until August 1995 when Taylor overtook the NPFL seat in the Council for himself.

1997 elections and Second Civil War

After the announcement of the results of the

1997 Liberian general election General elections were held in Liberia on 19 July 1997 as part of the 1996 peace agreement ending the First Liberian Civil War. The presidency, as well as all seats in the House of Representatives and the Senate were up for election. Voter turnou ...

, Musa stormed the AFL Barclay Training Center barracks, threatening the (predominately

Krahn The Krahn are an ethnic group of Liberia and Ivory Coast. This group belongs to the Kru language family and its people are sometimes referred to as the Wee, Guéré, Sapo, or Wobe. It is likely that Western contact with the Kru language is the p ...

) soldiers with an upcoming purge of AFL personnel from the Ministry of Defense.
Africa Confidential, Volumes 38-39
''. Miramoor Publications Limited, 1997. p. 11 The

ECOMOG The Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) was a West African multilateral armed force established by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). ECOMOG was a formal arrangement for separate armies to work ...

peace-keeping force protested against the incident, and (now President-elect) Taylor reprimanded Musa for the action. Musa was detained in Monrovia by Taylor for a period, court-martialed accused of having killed a member of Taylor's Mansion Guard.
Afriche, Volume 8, Issue 33 - Volume 9, Issue 36
''. p. 25 Musa received legal aid from the Justice and Peace Commission. Musa was a member of the legislature during the second National Transitional Government of Liberia.

Death

Musa died at the John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital in 2008.''The Inquirer''
Liberia: Isaac Musa is Dead
'' Isaac Musa was listed, along with 22 others, as "Dead Perpetrators" by the Liberian Truth and Reconciliation Commission (LTRC), presented by the Commission as 'perpetrators who the LTRC eterminedwere responsible for various forms of human rights abuses ..and war crimes but died before the conclusion of the LTRC.'

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Musa, Isaac 2008 deaths Liberian rebels Members of the National Transitional Legislative Assembly of Liberia Members of the Council of State 20th-century Liberian politicians