12 Nigerian troops sentenced to death for mutiny

Twelve soldiers fighting an Islamic insurgency in northeast Nigeria have been sentenced to death by firing squad for mutiny and attempted murder of their commanding officer, The Associated Press reported.

In a decision read early Tuesday by Brig. Gen. Chukwuemeka Okonkwo, the military tribunal found 12 soldiers guilty and five others innocent. One was sentenced to 28 days in jail with hard labor.

All the accused denied the charges. They all appeared to be in their 20s, and ranged in rank from private to corporal.

The revolt occurred after a convoy of soldiers was ordered to drive at night on a road frequently attacked by Boko Haram Islamic extremists. The soldiers initially refused, saying it was a suicide mission. But they eventually followed orders and were ambushed on May 13 by insurgents on the road from the northeast town of Chibok. An unknown number were killed.

Chibok is the town from which more than 270 schoolgirls were kidnapped a month earlier. More than 50 escaped and the rest remain captive.