Democratic Republic of Congo's ex-leader Joseph Kabila went on trial in absentia Friday on charges including treason over alleged support for M23 rebels.

He stands accused at a military court in Kinshasa of plotting to overthrow the government of President Felix Tshisekedi - a charge that could carry a death sentence.

He faces charges including homicide, torture and rape linked to M23, the charge sheet said.

Other charges include "taking part in an insurrection movement", "crime against the peace and safety of humanity" and "forcible occupation of the city of Goma".

Overthrow Tshisekedi

Kabila arrived in May in that eastern city, seized by the M23 in January before the rebels and the government signed a pledge in July to seek a permanent ceasefire.

The court opened his trial at 10:20 GMT in the Gombe district of the capital.

Kabila's successor as president, Tshisekedi, has branded him the brains behind the rebels, which has seized swathes of the resource-rich Congolese east with Rwanda's help.

The charge sheet seen by AFP described him as "one of the initiators of the Congo River Alliance", the M23's political arm.

He has been accused of colluding to try to overthrow Tshisekedi by force.

The charge sheet accused him of being responsible for atrocities committed by the movement in North and South Kivu provinces in the mineral-rich east.

Kabila rejects case

Kabila, 54, took power following his father Laurent Kabila's assassination in 2001 and governed DRC until 2019, before leaving the country in 2023.

Kabila has rejected the case as "arbitrary" and called the courts "an instrument of oppression".

The upper house of the legislature lifted his immunity as senator for life to allow his prosecution.

For more than three decades, eastern DRC has been ravaged by conflict between various armed groups. The unrest has intensified since the M23's resurgence in 2021.

DRC lifted a moratorium on the death penalty last year but no judicial executions have been carried out since.