A subsidiary of the Swiss cement group Holcim has pleaded guilty in the US to having paid protection money in the millions to the Islamic State in Rojava in 2013 and 2014. The company will pay a fine of 778 million dollars for this.
The French cement manufacturer Lafarge has admitted to having paid millions in protection money to the terrorist organization Islamic State in Rojava (northern Syria) in 2013 and 2014. In a court in New York on Tuesday, the subsidiary of the Swiss cement company Holcim pleaded guilty to "conspiracy to provide material support to designated foreign terrorist organizations" and agreed to pay a fine of 91 million US dollars (about 90 million euros). In addition, there is a fine of 687 million dollars (around 677 million euros).
The fine corresponds to the value of a factory in the village of Çelebiyê (al-Jalabiyya) in the south-east of the canton of Kobanê, which Lafarge says it wanted to continue working by making payments to the ISIS. According to the US Department of Justice, from August 2013 to October 2014, Lafarge paid ISIS and the former Al-Nusra Front, the Syrian affiliate of the Al-Qaeda terrorist network, a total of around six million dollars.
Lafarge Cement Syria (LCS) opened in 2010. According to the US judiciary, the group had generated sales of around 70 million dollars in northern Syria by the end of its business activities and had hopes for a dominant market position after the end of the civil war. According to the information, this was the first case of this kind.
Investigations also in France
Investigations against Lafarge are also underway in France. It is about the allegation of aiding and abetting crimes against humanity. The proceedings are based on a criminal complaint that eleven former employees of the northern Syrian cement plant, together with the NGOs ECCHR and Sherpa, filed in Paris in November 2016 against Lafarge and its subsidiary LCS. Lafarge has now explained that the company is cooperating extensively with the French authorities, but will defend itself against legal action that it considers “unjustified”.
Holcim itself not involved in events in Rojava
Lafarge merged with Swiss competitor Holcim in 2015. The new group was initially called LafargeHolcim before Lafarge was dropped from the name. However, Lafarge continues to exist as a separate brand. Holcim announced that the group welcomes the agreement between Lafarge and the US Department of Justice. Holcim itself was not involved in the events in northern Syria.
