France: Ex-Lafarge CEO jailed for funding Syrian jihadists

Former Lafarge CEO sentenced for financing terror to keep Syrian cement plant operational during civil war. | Contesto: cronaca

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• France: Ex-Lafarge CEO jailed for funding Syrian jihadists

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A Paris court has sentenced Bruno Lafont, the former chief executive of the world's largest cement maker Lafarge, to prison for his role in a scheme that financed jihadist groups in Syria, including the Islamic State (IS), to protect company operations. The landmark ruling, delivered on Tuesday, marks the first time a major French corporate leader has been convicted on charges of financing terrorism and endangering the lives of others. The court found that between 2011 and 2014, Lafarge's Syrian subsidiary paid nearly 13 million euros to armed factions, including IS and other terrorist organizations, to ensure the continued operation of its Jalabiya cement plant in northern Syria. The case centered on the company's conscious decision to maintain its lucrative cement factory as the Syrian civil war descended into chaos. Prosecutors presented extensive evidence, including internal emails and financial records, showing that Lafarge's local management, with knowledge from senior executives in Paris, structured payments as "taxes" or "security fees" to armed groups controlling the territory around the plant. This arrangement allowed the factory to continue sourcing raw materials and shipping out cement, generating significant revenue even as the conflict intensified and IS consolidated its brutal rule over the region. Beyond the terrorism financing charges, the court's verdict heavily emphasized the human cost of the corporate strategy. Judges ruled that by prioritizing production and profit, Lafarge knowingly exposed its local Syrian employees and contractors to extreme danger. Several employees were kidnapped, and others were forced to work under the threat of violence from the very groups the company was funding. The conviction for endangering lives underscores a profound failure of corporate duty of care, setting a powerful legal precedent for holding multinational executives accountable for the safety of their workforce in conflict zones. The trial peeled back the layers of a sophisticated corporate structure designed to obscure the flow of money. Funds were routed through a complex web of intermediaries and shell companies, with executives using coded language...

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Categoria: cronaca