two soldiers got death sentences for sexual violence - one for rape and the other for having taken part in the

two soldiers got death sentences for sexual violence - one for rape and the other for having taken part in the rape of a four-year-old girl. Capital punishment was also handed down to another soldier who killed his bodyguard and to a civilian for his involvement in the insurgency. Since 2 December, a total of 19 people - 15 soldiers and four civilians - have gone on trial in Sake, about 30km northwest of Goma, the capital of restive North Kivu province. The civilians were accused of "participating in an insurrectional movement" for supporting two local militias, said Christophe Ndibeshe, the provincial justice minister, adding that only one defendant has been acquitted. "Among the remaining 18, four have received death sentences and the others jail terms of between seven to 15 years," Ndibeshe told AFP. Ndibeshe said some of the soldiers were convicted for violent acts committed in Sake in November 2012, when the Congolese army stopped the advance on Goma by the now-defunct M23 rebel movement.