“Lafarge convicted of financing terrorism in Syria: A historic ruling in the fight for corporate accountability”, 13 April 2026

Lafarge, along with four former executives, was found guilty of financing terrorist groups -notably the Islamic State – totaling €5.5 million between 2013 and 2014 to keep its cement plant in Syria operational amidst the civil war, despite the risks to its employees. The court ordered the maximum fine for the company and prison sentences ranging from three to six years for the former executives. 

Four other individuals were also convicted: two local security managers and two intermediaries...

The Paris Criminal Court found that Lafarge had established a system of payments to armed groups to keep its Syrian plant running and protect its economic interests...

The court recognized that it was the joint decisions of senior executives at the Paris headquarters and the Syrian subsidiary that made this system possible…

Lafarge’s conviction for financing terrorism through its Syrian subsidiary will set a legal precedent…

More than 190 former Syrian employees of Lafarge joined the case as civil parties… They recounted their daily lives marked by the threat of dismissal, kidnappings, crossing areas under sniper fire...

However, the court ruled that they were not entitled to compensation, finding that individuals cannot qualify as victims of terrorism financing…

Lafarge remains under investigation for complicity in crimes against humanity – a charge that goes beyond financing terrorism, as it concerns the fueling of the gravest crimes under international law…