Editing History of Sierra Leone (section)

===Return to civilian rule and first Kabbah Presidency (1996–1997)===
Promises of a return to civilian rule were fulfilled by Bio, who handed power over to [[Ahmad Tejan Kabbah]] of the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP), after the conclusion of elections in early 1996. President Kabbah took power with a great promise of ending the civil war, opened [[dialogue]]s with the then-defeated RUF and invited RUF-leader Sankoh for peace negotiations, signing the [[Abidjan Peace Accord]] on 30 November 1996.

In January 1997, under international pressure, the Kabbah government ended their contract with Executive Outcomes even though a neutral monitoring force had not arrived. This created an opportunity for the RUF to regroup and renew military attacks. Sankoh was arrested in Nigeria, and by the end of March 1997 the peace accord had collapsed.