France opens probe into BNP Paribas over its role in Sudan

Paris prosecutors have opened an investigation into French bank BNP Paribas over allegations of complicity in crimes against humanity in Sudan, a lawyer and Paris-based International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) said on Thursday. The probe comes after nine Sudanese plaintiffs, who said they have been victims of rights abuses by ousted Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir’s former government of Sudan, filed a legal complaint last year against BNP Paribas. The plaintiffs allege the French bank was complicit in crimes against humanity because it provided financial services for the Sudanese government. They argue that in a U.S. sanctions violations case the…