DRC’s ex-leader Kabila sentenced to death in absentia for treason and war crimes

Former President of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Joseph Kabila, has been sentenced to death in absentia by a military court on charges of treason, war crimes, and conspiracy linked to the brutal M23 rebellion in the country’s east.
The verdict, delivered Tuesday (30 September) in Kinshasa, marks a dramatic fall from grace for the man who ruled DRC from 2001 to 2019. The court found Kabila guilty of collaborating with Rwanda-backed M23 rebels, who launched a swift offensive earlier this year, seizing major cities like Goma and Bukavu and establishing parallel administrations. The 54-year-old ex-president was also ordered to pay $33 billion in damages — $29 billion to the Congolese state and $4 billion to the war-torn provinces of North and South Kivu. The charges include murder, sexual assault, torture, and organizing an insurrection.
He has denied all accusations, calling the proceedings politically motivated and branding President Félix Tshisekedi’s government a “dictatorship.” His whereabouts remain unknown after briefly resurfacing in Goma in April, ostensibly to mediate peace. The court’s ruling follows the lifting of Kabila’s immunity by the Senate in May. The government alleges he masterminded the M23 uprising, a claim Kabila rejects. Despite a July ceasefire agreement, fighting continues in eastern Congo. The case underscores the country’s deepening political rifts and raises new questions about accountability, foreign interference, and the future of post-conflict justice in the region.