By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
SDNY COURTHOUSE, Oct 17 – BNP Paribas was sued, and raised as part of its defense the laws of Switzerland and of Sudan.
On November 5, 2020 U.S. then-District Court for the Southern District of New York Judge Alison J. Nathan held an oral argument. Inner City Press covered it.
The case involves BNP violating Sudan sanctions, and the mass killing of civilians in Darfur and elsewhere by the then Omar al Bashir government, for which BNP claims to bear no responsibility.
Jump cut to September 16, 2025, when Inner City Press covers the trial as a former compliance officer was asked about blocked transactions resubmitted without the word Sudan and passing; and a CNN journalist testified about El Fasher, where Inner City Press reported on UN corruption until it was (and still is) banned.
On September 18, the plaintiffs' witness was a refugee from Sudan
"As a Sudanese judge, I was supposed to have immunity. Plaintiffs' lawyer: Where did they take you? Witness: To Wau. To the headquarters. They started beating me (sobs)
On September 22, an expert formerly at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York testified over multiple objections that BNP did $10 billion of unauthorized transactions with Sudan.
On October 1, BNP's lawyers argued their Rule 5 motions, emphasizing violence and harm in Sudan as unrelated to oil revenue and their sanctions violations; Inner City Press live tweeted here.
On October 16 the closings, in which BNP's lawyer said among other things that BNP thought things were getting better in Sudan because the UN was there, and the IMF. Thread.
More on X for Subscribers here and Substack here
On October 17, the verdict:
2:15 pm Deputy: Have plaintiffs proved BNP is liable?
Foreperson: Yes
Deputy: How much to Turjuman Ramadan Adam? Foreperson: $6.75 million
Deputy: And to first plaintiff? Foreperson: $7.3 million Deputy: And second? Foreperson: $6.7 million
[Plus Turjuman's $6.75 = $20,750,000 that BNP owes - but they will move for "judgment as a matter of law - a UN-like impunity move.]
"Banking on Dictators" book coming...
Inner City Press will continue to cover the trial- and the country.
The case is Kashef et al v. BNP Paribas SA et al., 1:16-cv-3228 (Hellerstein)
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