Overview
- The Paris criminal court, which ruled Monday, convicted the company and eight former executives and ordered immediate custody for ex‑CEO Bruno Lafont, sentenced to six years, and for ex‑deputy Christian Herrault, sentenced to five.
- Judges found that in 2013–2014 Lafarge, through its Syrian unit and intermediary Firas Tlass, paid roughly €4.7–5.6 million to the Islamic State and Jabhat al‑Nosra to keep its Jalabiya cement plant running.
- The court said the payments helped the groups prepare attacks, including the January 2015 killings in France, and described a real commercial partnership with the Islamic State.
- Sanctions include the maximum €1.125 million criminal fine and a €4.57 million customs penalty, and defense teams said they will appeal and seek release.
- Victims of the November 13, 2015 attacks joined as civil parties, and the judgment follows Lafarge’s 2022 U.S. plea that cost about $778 million, a sequence that could set a precedent for how multinationals operate in war zones.