A Congolese high military court has convicted former President Joseph Kabila of treason, war crimes, and collaborating with Rwanda-backed M23 rebels, sentencing him to death in absentia.

Kabila, who has not been seen publicly for months, was also ordered to pay $33 billion in damages to Congo and its eastern provinces.

Prosecutors cited testimony from a former rebel insider claiming Kabila coordinated with M23 to overthrow President Félix Tshisekedi’s government.

Kabila’s party denounced the verdict as politically motivated. Kabila, who ruled Congo from 2001 to 2019, returned briefly to rebel-held Goma earlier this year but his whereabouts remain unknown, the Associated Press has reported.

The conviction comes amid intensified conflict in eastern Congo, where M23 advances have displaced millions and killed thousands.