Kinshasa, – A military court in the Democratic Republic of Congo has sentenced former President Joseph Kabila to death in absentia, after finding him guilty on multiple charges including war crimes, treason, and conspiracy.
Judges ruled that Kabila had met with commanders of the rebel group M23 and inspected training camps in Goma and Bukavu—two cities that were later seized by the insurgents. The court rejected a motion to confiscate his assets but upheld charges of national betrayal and collusion with armed groups.
Supporters of Kabila denounced the trial as politically motivated, arguing that the proceedings lacked transparency and fairness. Government officials, however, hailed the ruling as a “turning point” for justice in the DRC.
The 54-year-old former leader, who governed the DRC for 18 years after the 2001 assassination of his father, Laurent Kabila, left the country in 2023. He briefly returned in May 2025 to visit Goma, then under M23 control. His current whereabouts remain unknown.
Kabila handed power to President Félix Tshisekedi in 2019, marking the DRC’s first peaceful transfer of power. Relations between the two leaders quickly soured, pushing Kabila into self-imposed exile. His sentencing now deepens the political rift and raises questions over Congo’s fragile stability.
While the court’s ruling may never be enforced unless Kabila is extradited, it underscores Congo’s shifting political landscape—and the high-stakes battle between justice, accountability, and political survival.