A Paris court has convicted French cement manufacturer Lafarge of funding terrorist organisations after ruling that the company paid approximately $6.5 million to armed groups, including Islamic State and the al-Qaeda-linked Al-Nusra Front.
The verdict, delivered on Monday, marks the first time a corporate entity has been found guilty in France for financing terrorism. The court also handed prison sentences to senior former executives, including ex-CEO Bruno Lafont, who received six years in prison, and former deputy managing director Christian Herrault, who was sentenced to five years.
Lafarge acknowledged the court’s findings, stating that the transactions occurred more than a decade ago and violated the company’s internal code of conduct.
Investigations revealed that the company operated a cement plant in Syria, established in 2010 before the country’s civil conflict escalated. While many foreign firms exited Syria by 2012, Lafarge reportedly withdrew its international staff but continued operations through local workers until 2014, when the facility ultimately came under the control of Islamic State fighters.
Prosecutors argued that intermediaries were used to channel payments to armed groups in exchange for safe passage for staff and transport vehicles. The presiding judge, Isabelle Prevost-Desprez, ruled that the funds effectively strengthened terrorist organisations by helping them sustain operations and expand territorial control.
The court noted that the payments contributed to the groups’ ability to access resources and support wider violent activities, including attacks planned beyond the region. Lafarge was also fined €1.125 million.
In its defence, a former executive maintained that keeping the Syrian plant running was partly aimed at protecting local employees during the conflict.
Lafarge, which remains a significant player in global cement production, continues to operate major facilities in Nigeria, with an installed capacity of about 10.5 million metric tonnes across multiple plants. The company has recently pursued expansion projects in Gombe and Ogun States.
Its parent company, Holcim, had earlier sold its controlling stake in Lafarge Africa Plc to China-based Huaxin Cement in a deal valued at around $1 billion.
The ruling is expected to intensify global scrutiny of corporate dealings in conflict zones and financial flows linked to extremist organisations.
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