Death Sentence for Kabila: Ex-DR Congo President Accused of Coup Plot

A military court in the Democratic Republic of Congo has sentenced former president Joseph Kabila to death in absentia after finding him guilty of treason and collaboration with the M23 armed movement.

The ruling, delivered on Tuesday in Kinshasa, accused Kabila of working with the M23 group, which has captured parts of eastern Congo with backing from Rwanda. He was not present at the trial and was not represented by legal counsel.

Prosecutors alleged that Kabila, in alliance with Rwanda and with the support of former electoral commission chief Corneille Nangaa, plotted to remove President Felix Tshisekedi from power. Charges also linked him to homicide, torture, and rape tied to the activities of the rebel movement.

Kabila, who governed the central African nation from 2001 until 2019 after the killing of his father Laurent-Désiré Kabila, left the country in 2023 but was briefly seen in Goma in May.

His visit stirred concern within the government, especially after he was reported to have met religious leaders alongside M23 spokesman Lawrence Kanyuka.

Observers say the ruling is aimed at preventing Kabila from rallying opposition forces, even as his exact location remains uncertain. His political party has rejected the proceedings, describing them as politically motivated.

The Democratic Republic of Congo ended a moratorium on the death penalty last year, although no executions have been carried out in decades.

Rwanda continues to deny supporting M23, but United Nations experts have stated that its army played a major role in the rebel group’s campaign in the east.