Perseus Academic: My Friend the Mercenary by James Brabazon

In February 2002, British journalist James Brabazon set out to travel with guerrilla forces into Liberia to show the world what was happening in that war-torn country. To protect him, he hired Nick du Toit, a former South African Defence Force soldier who had fought in conflicts across Africa for over three decades. What follows is an incredible behind-the-scenes account of the Liberian rebels—known as the LURD—as they attempt to seize control of the country from government troops led by President Charles Taylor. Brabazon takes his readers into enemy jungles, following a group of LURD rebels—led by Sekou Conneh, a former used-car salesman; Brigadier-General Deku, the senior field commander; and a tough twenty-seven-year-old Brigadier General dubbed Dragon Master—as they attempt to change their nation’s fate. The men must deal with limited supplies—in the midst of firefights they are forced to retreat as they run out of bullets—and battle not only opposition forces but extreme heat, hunger, and sheer exhaustion.

Brabazon’s friendship with Nick opens a door to a dangerous world of mercenaries, spies, and violent regime change. Nick invites James to film a coup to overthrow the government of Equatorial Guinea. In a story line out of a Frederick Forsyth novel, a group of mercenaries, intelligence operatives, and international financiers plot to fly a plane full of hired guns to this tiny West African nation fabulously rich in oil—but the plot goes awry. The mercenaries are arrested, and Nick is sentenced to serve thirty-four years in Black Beach prison, Africa’s most notorious jail. In a twist of fate, Brabazon remained free.

In this gripping narrative, James Brabazon paints a brilliant portrait of the chaos that tore West Africa apart: nations run by warlords and kleptocrats, rebels fighting to displace them, ordinary people caught in the crossfire—and everywhere adventurers and mercenaries operating in war’s dark shadows. It is also a brutally honest book about what it takes to be a journalist, survivor, and friend in this morally corrosive crucible.