Congo’s Ex-President Joseph Kabila Sentenced to Death in Absentia

A Congolese military court has sentenced former President Joseph Kabila to death in absentia after convicting him of treason, crimes against humanity, and other grave offenses.

Kabila, 54, who led the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) from 2001 to 2019, was accused of collaborating with and supporting the M23 rebel movement, a Rwandan-backed group blamed for years of violence in eastern Congo.

During a military tribunal session in Kinshasa on Tuesday, presiding judge Lieutenant General Joseph Mutombo Katalayi read the verdict in a four-hour ruling, declaring Kabila guilty of war crimes, murder, sexual assault, torture, conspiracy, and aiding terrorism.

“He has always been the undisputed leader of M23,” Mutombo stated, before citing Article 7 of the Military Penal Code to justify the death penalty as the “single, most severe sentence.”

The former president’s whereabouts remain unknown, though his legal team still has the option to appeal the ruling.

Kabila’s political coalition, the Common Front for Congo (FCC), has dismissed the verdict as “illegal from start to finish,” describing the proceedings as a “tragicomedy.”

The ruling marks a dramatic escalation in Congo’s political landscape, as Kabila—once seen as a powerful figure in the region—now faces the country’s harshest punishment.