ISTANBUL

The Berlin-based European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) filed a criminal complaint in France on Monday against TotalEnergies, accusing the oil and gas company of complicity in war crimes, torture and enforced disappearance in Mozambique, the rights group announced Tuesday.

"The oil and gas major is accused of having directly financed and materially supported the Joint Task Force, composed of Mozambican armed forces, which between July and September 2021 allegedly detained, tortured and killed dozens of civilians on TotalEnergies’ gas site," ECCHR wrote in a statement.

It noted that the complaint was filed with the French National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor, which also has a mandate to investigate international crimes.

"This filing comes as TotalEnergies just announced the lifting of the force majeure declared in April 2021 on its liquified natural gas project, Mozambique LNG, despite a persistent conflict, intensifying deadly attacks and a major humanitarian crisis," the statement added.

ECCHR said the complaint focuses on the “container massacre” at the company’s facility, citing an “insurgent attack” on Palma town by the armed group Al-Shabab in March and April 2021.

"The Mozambican army – including members of the Joint Task Force supported by TotalEnergies – allegedly arbitrarily detained dozens of civilians in metal containers situated at the facility entrance between July and September 2021," it explained.

The rights group cited allegations that detainees were tortured, subjected to enforced disappearance, and, in some cases, executed.

The statement stressed that the Joint Task Force was established through a 2020 memorandum between TotalEnergies' Mozambique subsidiary and the Mozambican government to be "a dedicated security unit to protect the Mozambique LNG project operations."

"TotalEnergies knew that the Mozambican armed forces had been accused of systematic human rights violations, yet continued to support them with the only objective to secure its own facility," said Clara Gonzales from ECCHR.

She noted that TotalEnergies’ involvement with local armed forces and the “gravity of the allegations” should prompt French judicial authorities to open an investigation.

"Companies and their executives are not neutral actors when they operate in conflict zones: if they enable or fuel crimes, they might be complicit and should be held accountable," Gonzales added.

The ECCHR recalled that another complaint was filed in 2023 by survivors of the 2021 Palma attack, accusing TotalEnergies of failing to protect subcontractors, some of whom were killed. In March 2025, the Nanterre prosecutor opened a preliminary investigation into the company for manslaughter and failing to assist persons in danger.