French cement giant Lafarge went on trial in Paris on Tuesday, facing explosive allegations that it paid millions in Euros to the Islamic State (IS) group and other jihadist factions to keep its Syrian operations afloat during the country's brutal civil war. The case, described as unprecedented in corporate accountability, could expose the company and several of its former executives to serious criminal penalties.
Investigation judges accuse Lafarge of transferring nearly €5 million ($5.83 million) to IS and al-Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, Jabhat al-Nusra, between 2013 and 2014. The alleged payments were made through its local subsidiary, Lafarge Cement Syria (LCS), as "Protection money" to ensure safe passage for workers and supplies and to keep its €680-million Jalabiya cement plant operational amid escalating violence in northern Syria.
Prosecutors have charged the company and several of its former top executives, including ex-CEO Bruno Lafont, with financing terrorism and violating international sanctions. The list of defendants includes five former operational and security officials, as well as two Syrian intermediaries, one of whom remains at large under an international arrest warrant. If convicted, Lafarge could face fines of up to €1.2 million for terrorism financing, and significantly higher penalties for breaching sanctions.
The case has drawn intense global scrutiny, following a related U.S. prosecution in 2022 in which Lafarge pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide material support to terrorist groups and agreed to pay a $778-million fine, the first such conviction of a corporation on terrorism-related charges in the United States. The U.S. Justice Department said the company effectively entered into a “revenue-sharing” arrangement with IS, paying militants to stifle competition and maintain control of key routes for cement distribution.
Lafarge's activities in Syria began before the war, when it completed its Jalabiya plant in 2010, a year before the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad spiraled into full-scale conflict. As other multinationals withdrew in 2012, Lafarge continued operating, withdrawing only foreign staff but leaving hundreds of Syrian employees on site. Investigators allege that between 2013 and 2014, the company funneled payments through intermediaries to purchase raw materials and secure safe passage through IS-held checkpoints.
The trial, expected to run until December 16, stems from a 2017 French judicial inquiry triggered by complaints from NGOs, former Syrian employees, and France's Finance Ministry. Apart from the terrorism charges, Lafarge remains under a separate investigation for alleged complicity in crimes against humanity, based on accusations that its payments helped IS sustain its violent operations. In the U.S., hundreds of Yazidi survivors, including Nobel Laureate Nadia Murad, have also filed a civil suit, claiming the company indirectly facilitated IS's atrocities.
Lafarge's parent company, Swiss-based Holcim, which merged with the French firm in 2015, has distanced itself from the Syrian scandal, insisting it had no involvement or knowledge of the alleged conduct. As the high-stakes trial unfolds, it is set to test how far corporations can be held criminally liable for doing business in conflict zones, and whether profit can ever justify the price of complicity in terror.
