In a stunning turn of events that has sent shockwaves through the Democratic Republic of Congo and beyond, former President Joseph Kabila was sentenced to death in absentia by a high military court in Kinshasa on September 30, 2025. The verdict, which finds Kabila guilty of treason, war crimes, and organizing an armed insurrection, marks the first time in the nation’s history that a former head of state has faced such a fate at the hands of a military tribunal.
Kabila, who ruled the vast Central African nation from 2001 to 2019, was not present for his trial. In fact, his whereabouts remain a mystery. The proceedings, which began in July 2025, took place without Kabila or any legal representation on his behalf. The court ordered his immediate arrest, but with the former president last seen in the rebel-held city of Goma in May, his capture appears unlikely in the near future.
The charges against Kabila are sweeping and severe. According to the Congolese government and as reported by Associated Press and RFI, he was accused of collaborating with neighboring Rwanda and the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group. This coalition staged a dramatic offensive in January 2025, seizing key cities in mineral-rich eastern Congo, including Goma and later Bukavu. The government further alleged that Kabila played a central role in the insurrection, conspiring with Corneille Nangaa, leader of the Congo River Alliance, and directly supporting the M23’s campaign against the government of President Félix Tshisekedi.
The court did not stop at the death sentence. It also ordered Kabila to pay over $33 billion in damages—$29 billion to the Congolese state, $2 billion each to the provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu, and additional sums to associations representing victims of the ongoing conflict. The damages reflect the scale of devastation wrought by the fighting, which, according to South China Morning Post and Le Monde, has killed approximately 3,000 people in 2025 alone and displaced nearly 7 million, further deepening what was already one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises.
The evidence presented against Kabila included testimony from Eric Nkuba, the imprisoned former chief of staff to rebel leader Corneille Nangaa. Nkuba, who was himself convicted of rebellion in August 2024, claimed that Kabila was in regular phone contact with Nangaa, discussing plans to overthrow President Tshisekedi. The court, as cited by RFI, concluded unequivocally: "Joseph Kabila is the chief of the AFC/M23 coalition." Lieutenant General Jean-René Likulia Bakulia, representing the prosecutor’s office, insisted, "He is the boss [of the M23]."
Kabila has consistently denied all allegations. In May, after the Congolese Senate voted to lift his immunity as a senator for life, Kabila denounced the move as dictatorial. He further expressed his support for the M23 campaign in a February op-ed for South Africa’s Sunday Times, though he maintained that he had not collaborated with the rebels or Rwanda. His party, the People’s Party for Reconstruction and Democracy, has called the entire process a sham. "This is a vast joke. We have always said this is a political trial," said Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, the party’s permanent secretary, in an interview with RFI. He added, "We believe that the clear intention of the dictatorship in power is to eliminate, to neutralize, a major political actor."
Not everyone shares that view. Lawyers representing the victims and the Congolese state have welcomed the verdict. "Justice rendered in the name of the Congolese people gives satisfaction to its people," said Richard Bondo, a lawyer for North and South Kivu provinces, according to Associated Press. Kasongo Mayombo, representing several NGOs, told RFI, "Victims finally appear and the suffering they live in anonymity now has an author. Perhaps we will go even further and find other authors or accomplices of the crimes they endured. This is the beginning of the end of impunity."
The trial itself has drawn criticism for its speed and lack of procedural safeguards. As Le Monde observed, the investigation was rushed, the defendant in exile, and no lawyer was present to mount a defense. The charges were extensive: treason, participation in an insurrectional movement, crimes against the peace and security of humanity, intentional homicide, rape, torture, deportation, and forcible occupation of parts of eastern Congo. Most of these charges stem from the alleged authority Kabila wielded over the AFC-M23 rebellion, which resurfaced in late 2021 after a decade of dormancy.
Kabila’s political journey has been tumultuous. He assumed the presidency at age 29 after the assassination of his father, Laurent Kabila, in 2001. He extended his mandate by delaying elections after his term ended in 2017, eventually stepping aside after his chosen successor lost to Tshisekedi in December 2018. Since leaving office, Kabila has largely lived in self-imposed exile, reportedly spending time in South Africa before his brief and controversial reappearance in Goma earlier this year.
The conflict in eastern Congo, meanwhile, rages on. The region, rich in minerals but plagued by violence for three decades, saw a dramatic escalation in early 2025. The M23, with alleged Rwandan backing, seized Goma and Bukavu in rapid succession. The Congolese government has accused Rwanda of direct involvement, a charge Rwanda denies, insisting its forces only act in self-defense against Hutu militias linked to the 1994 genocide. The humanitarian toll continues to mount, with millions displaced and aid agencies warning of catastrophic shortages of food, shelter, and medical care.
The political implications of the verdict are profound. Analysts cited by RFI and South China Morning Post warn that the sentence could deepen Congo’s already sharp political divides and complicate efforts to end the violence in the east. President Tshisekedi’s government has suspended Kabila’s party and moved to seize its leaders’ assets, signaling a hardline approach to perceived threats from the opposition. Some observers believe the death sentence is as much about neutralizing Kabila as a political force as it is about delivering justice for the crimes attributed to him.
For now, the fate of Joseph Kabila remains uncertain. With his exact location unknown and the means of enforcing the court’s sentence unclear, the former president’s shadow continues to loom large over Congolese politics. As the country grapples with ongoing violence and political instability, the verdict stands as both a symbol of accountability and a stark reminder of the challenges that lie ahead.
