DR Congo’s military courts have sentenced 66 soldiers to death for cowardice, mutiny and refusing orders, the latest in a series of mass trials as Kinshasa struggles to hold the line against rebels in the east.
The verdicts, handed down by a military court sitting in Walikale, North Kivu, follow a pattern in which the army has turned to capital punishment to stem desertions, while the problems soldiers themselves blame, from poor pay to a lack of equipment, remain unresolved.
What did the court in Walikale decide?
The court tried 71 soldiers accused of abandoning their positions and fleeing during clashes with the Front for the Refoundation of the Nation (FRN), a rebel coalition that includes the M23 group, the BBC reported. Sixty-six were sentenced to death, four were acquitted and one was jailed for 10 years.
The soldiers were arrested on October 20, according to Ugandan newspaper The Observer, which identified the tribunal as the Goma garrison military court sitting in Walikale. Major Dieudonné Kasereka, a spokesman for the army’s 34th military region, said the sentences were intended to reinforce discipline in the armed forces, the paper reported.
How often has DR Congo sentenced soldiers to death?
The Walikale case is one of the largest so far. Last month another 27 soldiers were sentenced to death for withdrawing from the front line, the BBC said. Military courts sentenced 25 soldiers to death in July 2024 and 55 in March 2025 for fleeing rebel advances in Lubero territory, The Observer reported.
Since the start of 2025, at least 507 soldiers have been convicted by military courts, 381 of them sentenced to death, according to figures compiled by French broadcaster RFI.
The trials followed the government’s decision in March 2024 to lift a 20-year moratorium on the death penalty, which it said was needed to remove “traitors” from the army. Rights groups widely criticised the move. No formal executions have been carried out since, according to the BBC, leaving the sentences as a deterrent whose force is uncertain.
Why does the Congolese army keep retreating?
The army’s campaign against armed groups has long been undermined by poor discipline and disorganisation, and soldiers complain of low pay and inadequate equipment, the BBC reported. Mass convictions address desertion after the fact but not those underlying weaknesses.
The front line continues to move. On November 8 rebels took Bunyakiri in South Kivu’s Kalehe territory after pushing out government forces and allied Wazalendo militia, The Observer reported. Both sides accuse each other of breaking peace commitments, despite the US-brokered agreement between DR Congo and Rwanda signed in Washington last year.
Kinshasa accuses Rwanda of backing the M23, which Kigali and the rebels deny. Pressure on Rwanda has grown: the US Treasury placed sanctions on Rwanda’s defence ministry this month, according to the BBC.
What role does Joseph Kabila play?
The conflict has also taken on a sharper political edge. Former president Joseph Kabila was sentenced to death in absentia in October 2025 on charges including war crimes and treason, which he denied, and has since been named as the FRN’s leader, the BBC reported. His trial had been repeatedly delayed amid rising violence in the east.
For a government fighting a rebellion led in part by a former head of state, the trials send a message of zero tolerance to its own ranks. Whether they improve performance on the battlefield is less clear, given that previous mass convictions have not stopped the rebels’ advance.
FAQ
Why were 66 Congolese soldiers sentenced to death?
A military court in Walikale convicted them of cowardice, mutiny and refusing to obey orders after they allegedly abandoned their positions during clashes with FRN rebels.
Has DR Congo executed any soldiers?
No formal executions have been carried out since DR Congo lifted its moratorium on the death penalty in March 2024, according to the BBC.
How many Congolese soldiers have been sentenced to death since 2025?
At least 381 soldiers have been sentenced to death out of 507 convicted by military courts since the start of 2025, according to RFI figures.
Who leads the FRN rebel coalition?
Former president Joseph Kabila has been named as the FRN’s leader. The coalition includes the M23 group, which DR Congo says is backed by Rwanda.
