Cement maker Lafarge appeals terrorism funding condemnation

Cement maker Lafarge and eight other defendants have appealed their condemnation for funding terrorism during Syria’s civil war, Paris prosecutors said. (AFP/File)

• The company, now part of Switzerland’s Holcim, was fined 1.125 million euros
• The court also sanctioned seven former Lafarge executives

PARIS: Cement maker Lafarge and eight other defendants have appealed their condemnation for funding terrorism during Syria’s civil war, Paris prosecutors told AFP.
All were found guilty on April 13 following a Paris trial of having paid nearly 5.6 million euros (now $6.6 million) in 2013 and 2014 to armed militant groups to maintain operations at a cement plant in Jalabiya, northern Syria.
The company, now part of Switzerland’s Holcim, was fined 1.125 million euros and ordered to pay, jointly with four of its former executives, a separate fine of 4.57 million euros for violating international financial sanctions.
The court also sanctioned seven former Lafarge executives, including former CEO Bruno Lafont, who was sentenced to six years and is incarcerated in a Paris jail. He has since filed a request for his release.