A military court in the Democratic Republic of Congo has sentenced 66 soldiers to death for cowardice, mutiny and disobeying orders amid ongoing clashes with rebel groups in the country’s eastern region.
The sentences were handed down by the Goma Garrison Military Court following trials involving soldiers accused of abandoning their positions and fleeing battles with rebel forces.
According to Deutsche Welle (DW), at least 71 members of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC) were arrested in separate incidents linked to the fighting near the country’s borders with Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi.
The soldiers were accused of abandoning their posts or fleeing clashes with rebels operating under the Front for the Refoundation of the Nation (FRN).
Prosecutors had requested the death penalty for 70 defendants and a 10-year prison sentence for an intelligence officer. However, the court acquitted four of the defendants.
Major Dieudonne Kasereka, the FARDC’s head of communications in the affected region, said the prosecution was necessary to strengthen discipline among troops operating in the conflict-hit provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu.
The FRN is an umbrella group of rebel organisations that includes the March 23 Movement (M23) and the Alliance River Congo (AFC).
The group is led by former Congolese President Joseph Kabila, who became increasingly politically isolated after President Felix Tshisekedi assumed office in 2019.
Kabila subsequently went into self-imposed exile in an area previously occupied by M23 rebels.
The conflict has also involved the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), an ethnic Hutu militia operating in parts of eastern DR Congo.
Rwanda has repeatedly denied involvement in the fighting, although the Congolese government and several members of the international community have accused Kigali of supporting the rebels.
Rwanda was involved in a United States-brokered peace agreement with DR Congo in 2025, although the deal has faced questions over its effectiveness in resolving the longstanding conflict.
Earlier this year, the United Nations condemned FRN and Rwandan soldiers over alleged abuses, including murder, torture, corporal punishment, forced recruitment, abusive labour practices and the use of child soldiers.
The latest death sentences come amid continuing insecurity in eastern DR Congo, where fighting between government forces and rebel groups has displaced communities and intensified regional tensions.
