Photo taken on April 11, 2024 shows soldiers of the Congolese Army on patrol in Goma, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). (Photo: (Xinhua/Wang Guansen).

A military court in the Democratic Republic of Congo has convicted 25 soldiers to death on accusations that they fled frontline battles with the M23 rebel group in the east of the country, their lawyers said.

About 27 soldiers and four of their civilian wives, appeared before the Butembo garrison military court in the North Kivu Province and were charged with fleeing the enemy, dissipation of war munitions and violation of orders.

“I find them guilty and sentence each of them to death,” said Colonel Kabeya Ya Hanu, president of the military court, according to Al Jazeera news outlet.

French news agency AFP reported that the other accused, including the four women, were acquitted for lack of evidence.

It is also reported that the M23 (March 23 movement) has recently taken several towns – including the strategic town of Kanyabayonga, which is seen as a gateway to the major commercial centres of Butembo and Beni.

DR Congo’s mineral-rich east has been plagued by fighting between both local and foreign-based armed groups for the past three decades, the conflict having spilled over from the Rwandan genocide in the 1990s.

Last March, the Congolese government lifted the moratorium on the death penalty that had been in force since 2003 in the country.

Kinshasa accuses neighboring Rwanda of backing the Tutsi-led rebel group, allegations proven to be of substance by the United Nations, United States and other powers, but which Kigali denies.