A military prosecutor in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has called for the death penalty against former president Joseph Kabila, who is being tried in absentia on charges of treason and war crimes.
On Friday, General Lucien Rene Likulia urged the judges to sentence Kabila to death, accusing him of treason, war crimes, and leading an armed insurrection. The trial, which began in July, centers on allegations that Kabila supported the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels, a group responsible for violence in the DRC’s troubled east.
Kabila, who has lived outside the country for two years, faces multiple charges, including plotting to overthrow current President Felix Tshisekedi. The indictment also accuses him of homicide, torture, rape, and of backing the M23 during its capture of Goma in January before the group declared a permanent ceasefire in July.
The court documents further claim Kabila traveled to the eastern city of Goma in May, where he met local religious leaders alongside M23’s spokesman, Lawrence Kanyuka. President Tshisekedi has publicly alleged that Kabila masterminded the M23 insurgency, which has seized resource-rich territories in eastern Congo with Rwanda’s alleged support.
Kabila has strongly rejected the accusations, calling the proceedings “an instrument of oppression.” Though the DRC lifted its moratorium on the death penalty last year, no executions have yet been carried out.
The charge sheet obtained by AFP describes Kabila as “one of the initiators of the Congo River Alliance” (AFC), the political wing of M23, and accuses him of collaborating with Rwanda in an attempt to “overthrow by force the power established by law.” It also blames him for atrocities committed by M23 fighters in North and South Kivu provinces.
While Rwanda denies giving military aid to M23, UN experts have said Rwandan forces played a “critical” role in the group’s offensive in the region. The AFC and M23’s executive secretary, Benjamin Mbonimpa, has publicly dismissed Kabila’s trial as a “malevolent strategy,” distancing the movement from the former president.
Joseph Kabila ruled the DRC from 2001, after the assassination of his father Laurent Kabila, until 2009. Despite leaving the country in 2023, he remains a significant figure in Congolese politics and has criticized Tshisekedi’s leadership as a “dictatorship.”
Eastern DRC has endured decades of violence from armed groups, with conflicts escalating since the resurgence of M23 in 2021.
What you should know
Joseph Kabila, who rose to power after the assassination of his father and ruled the DRC for nearly a decade, is facing grave accusations linking him to the notorious M23 rebellion.
Though he has denied the charges, prosecutors claim he collaborated with Rwanda to destabilize the country.
His trial highlights the deepening political and military tensions in a nation already torn by decades of conflict in its mineral-rich east.
