French Court Finds Lafarge Guilty of Funding ISIS and Al-Qaeda’s Nusra Front, Ex-CEO Gets Six Years

A French court has convicted cement giant Lafarge of financing terrorist organizations, including the Islamic State and Al-Qaeda’s Nusra Front, ruling that the company paid at least $6.5 million to insurgents in Syria between 2013 and 2014. Presiding Judge Isabelle Prevost-Desprez handed former CEO Bruno Lafont a six-year prison sentence on Monday, while eight other employees were found guilty of complicity in terrorist activities in northern Syria through the staggered payments.

Lafarge admitted the funds were intended to safeguard its operations as the insurgency crippled Syria’s economy. The company claimed the money was meant to ensure its cement plant ran without disruption. However, Judge Prevost-Desprez stated, “It is clear to the court that the sole purpose of the funding of a terrorist organisation was to keep the Syrian plant running for economic reasons. Payments to terrorist entities enabled Lafarge to continue its operations.” She added that the payments “took the form of a genuine commercial partnership with IS.”

The court heard that the funds also secured safe passage for employees housed in Manjib, who had to cross the Euphrates River to reach the plant. Lafarge argued it chose not to shut down out of concern for its mostly local workforce. “We could have washed our hands of it and walked away, but what would have happened to the factory’s employees?” said former deputy managing director Christian Herrault.

Judge Prevost-Desprez sentenced Herrault to five years in prison. Firas Tlass, a Syrian former Lafarge employee who physically delivered the money to the terrorists, received a seven-year sentence in absentia. The court also imposed a $1.3 million fine on Lafarge, the maximum penalty sought by prosecutors.

Responding to the verdict, Lafarge SA said it “acknowledges the court’s finding, which concerns a legacy matter involving conduct that occurred more than a decade ago and was in flagrant violation of Lafarge’s Code of Conduct,” according to Reuters. The case echoes a 2022 U.S. lawsuit in which Lafarge agreed to pay $777 million in a plea deal over similar illegal payments to terrorist groups in Syria.

About The Author

Dele Fashomi

Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.

Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.

He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.

Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).

He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.

He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.

Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled:  Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.

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