The Paris Court of Appeal confirmed, Wednesday, May 18, the indictment for "complicity in crimes against humanity" of the French cement group Lafarge for its activities in Syria until 2014, in accordance with its previous decision which had was overturned by the Court of Cassation.

The group has announced that it will appeal against this confirmation on appeal.

Lafarge, which merged with the Swiss Holcim in 2015, is suspected of having paid nearly 13 million euros to armed groups, including the Islamic State (IS) group, to keep its factory in Jalabiya, in the northern Syria, in 2013 and 2014.

The Paris Court of Appeal had invalidated in 2019 the charge of "complicity in crimes against humanity", considering that there were no "serious or consistent indications of complicity" of Lafarge in the crimes committed by the IS.

But this decision was overturned in September 2021 by the Court of Cassation, which argued that one “can be complicit in crimes against humanity even if one does not intend to associate with the commission of these crimes", and asked the Court of Appeal to rule again on the indictment.

"When serious crimes are committed, it is not only political and military leaders whose responsibility must be elucidated but also economic actors," said Claire Tixeire, lawyer for the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights, at the outcome of the hearing, to journalists, rejoicing at this "victory".

"It is the first time in the world that a company has been indicted for such a crime. It is also the first time in the world that a parent company has been indicted for activities abroad in through its subsidiary. From the point of view of the responsibility of multinationals, this is very important", she added.

With AFP and Reuters

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