A military tribunal in the Congolese town of Kisangani has rejected an appeal filed by two Norwegians sentenced to death on charges of espionage and killing their driver.

The two, 27 and 28 years old, have also been sentenced to paying 40 million euros to the Democratic Republic of Congo and tens of thousands of euros in damages to the driver's next of kin. The two Norwegians say they are innocent. It is thought unlikely the two will actually be executed as death sentences in the DRC are routinely commuted to life imprisonment. It is not clear what the two men were doing in Congo, but they may have worked as mercenaries or private security guards.