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A military court in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) has sentenced 66 soldiers to death for cowardice in the face of the enemy, mutiny and disobeying orders from senior officers.
The verdict was reported by local media on Sunday (November 8).
According to the UN-backed Radio Okapi, the trial was held at the Goma Garrison Military Court in North Kivu province. More than 70 soldiers faced trial. Four were acquitted, while another was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
The court found the accused guilty of mutiny, disobeying orders from senior officers and displaying cowardice in the face of the enemy.
The soldiers sentenced to death were members of the 3415th Regiment of the Congolese army. They were arrested on October 20 in the Walikale area, where they were accused of committing the offences.
The country’s army said one of the main objectives of the trial was to strengthen discipline and order within the armed forces amid the ongoing security crisis in eastern Congo.
Earlier in October, another Congolese military court sentenced 27 soldiers to death on charges of cowardice after they abandoned their frontline positions and retreated while fighting AFC/M23 rebels.
