THROWBACKTHISDAY, JAN 16; Congolese President Laurent-Désiré Kabila is assassinated.

                         

In the afternoon of January 16, 2001 Kabila was shot by one of his bodyguards, Rashidi Muzele, who was killed as he attempted to flee the scene.

According to a Rwandan former intelligence chief and allegations made by Democratic Republic of Congo's officials; his assassination was committed by some of his bodyguards and masterminded by Rwanda. According to the documentary film Murder in Kinshasa, made by Marlène Rabaud and Arnaud Zajtman; A Lebanese diamond dealer allegedly organized the logistics of the assassination.

Eleven Lebanese nationals were executed in the evening of the assassination as part of a punitive campaign by the DRC's authorities who managed to keep power, despite the assassination of their President. The exact circumstances are still disputed. Kabila reportedly died on the spot, according to DRC's then health minister Dr Mashako Mamba, who was in the next door office when Kabila was shot and arrived immediately after the assassination. The government claimed that Kabila was still alive, however, when he was flown to a hospital in Zimbabwe after he was shot so that DRC authorities could organize the tense succession.

The Congolese government announced that he had died of his wounds on January 18. One week later, his body was returned to Congo for a state funeral and his son, Joseph Kabila, became president eight days later. By doing so, DRC officials were accomplishing the "verbal testimony" of the deceased President. Then Justice Minister Mwenze Kongolo and Laurent-Désiré Kabila's aide de camp Eddy Kapend have reported that Laurent Kabila had told them that his son Joseph, then number two of the army, should take over, if Laurent-Désiré Kabila was to pass away. 

The investigation into Kabila's assassination led to 135 people – including 4 children – being tried before a special military tribunal. The alleged ringleader, Colonel Eddy Kapend (one of Kabila's cousins), and 25 others were sentenced to death in January 2003, but not executed. Of the other defendants 64 were jailed, with sentences from six months to life, and 45 were exonerated. Some individuals were also accused of being involved in a plot to overthrow his son. Among them was Kabila's special advisor Emmanuel Dungia, former ambassador to South Africa. Many people believe the trial was flawed and the convicted defendants are innocent

THROWBACKTHISDAY; makes it 15 years and TBT Blog remembers him.