in the african civil wars money from the sale of diamonds has been used to pay for the conflict. these diamonds are known as" war diamonds" or "blood diamonds". Set in Sierra leone during the 1990s civil war, the film is the story of an ex - mercenary from Zimbabwe, danny archer and solomon vandy , a fisherman . Rebels capture and sepate salomon from his family, forcing him to work ina diamond field. here he finds a rare pink diamond which could give him both the means to save his wife and daughters from a life as refugees, and to rescue his son, dia, from a terrible fate as a child soldier. so solomon decides to hide it. Archer, who has made his living trading diamonds for armas, learns of solomon's hidden stone. the diamond could free him from his life of violance and corruption. whit the help of maddy bowen, an american journalist hoping to discover the truth behind conflict diamonds, archer and solomon start a trek through the rebel territory. what happens next is the climax of the film.