Case: LaFarge (Subject Matter)

LaFarge SA, a French cement company, renamed to Holcim after merging with a Swiss cement company, along with several high-ranking executives is accused of financing armed groups, including ISIS through its branch in North-East Syria between 2012 and 2014. Allegedly, LaFarge paid an estimate of 13 million Euro to armed groups, including monthly payments to ISIS amounting to 20,000 Euro in order to keep its regional cement plant operating, thereby endangering the lives of its employees. On 28 June 2018 LaFarge was officially charged for complicity in crimes against humanity committed by ISIS, endangerment of people’s lives, and violations of embargos. On 9 November 2019, the Paris Court of Appeals decided that the indictment could only include charges relating to terrorism financing, endangerment of peoples’ lives, and violations of embargos. Subsequently, in September 2021, the French Supreme Court confirmed the chares concerning complicity in crimes against humanity, dropped charges in relation to the endangerment of people’s lives relating to the Syrian workers, and referred the case back to the Court of Appeal. On 18 May 2022, the Paris Court of Appeals then confirmed that LaFarge could indeed be charged with complicity in crimes against humanity. Additionally, the Court of Cassation’s ruling in case No668 B+R from 12 May 2023 finding that for the requirement of ‘double criminality’ in relation to core international crimes pursuant to French law to be met in relation to alleged crimes against humanity committed abroad against foreign nationals by foreign nationals, it is not necessary that the offences are qualified as core international crimes in foreign domestic legislation, as long as the underlying conduct is criminalised as common offences, such as murder, rape or torture.