A group of Americans has filed a lawsuit against Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson, alleging co-operative efforts with terror organisations in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria.
Ericsson is accused of making protection payments to designated foreign terrorist organisations, obstructing US government counterterrorism efforts, and fraudulently concealing their aid to terrorists from the US, Ericsson’s shareholders, and victims of terrorism like the plaintiffs.
The complaint was filed by 528 Americans, comprised of 165 Gold Star families and former hostages, families of hostages, and injured service members.
They say Ericsson knowingly supported a terrorist campaign that attacked, killed, and wounded thousands of Americans in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria, including the plaintiffs, by aiding the terrorists through it regular protection money payments to terrorists, and its intentional obstruction of US counterterrorism policy.
Ericsson has been quoted in Mobile World Live saying the company would “zealously defend against this action” and “any effort to connect Ericsson to the actions described in the complaint will fail on the merits”.
In February, Ericsson disclosed the results of an internal investigation undertaken in 2019 into its activities in Iraq showing misconduct between 2011 and 2019.