Lafarge and former executives found guilty of financing terrorism in Syria

French cement company Lafarge and eight former officials were convicted by a Paris court on Monday for financing terrorism in 2013 and 2014. The company made payments totaling nearly 5.6 million euros to three jihadist organizations, including the Islamic State IS, to keep a factory operating during the war in Syria. The court stated that these payments enabled the groups to "prepare terrorist attacks," including those in France in January 2015. The court president, Isabelle Prévost-Desprez, emphasized that this method of financing terrorist organizations, primarily IS, was crucial in the group's control over Syria's natural resources, allowing it to fund terrorist acts both locally and abroad, particularly in Europe. Lafarge has since been acquired by the Swiss company Holcim.