[BHRRC received the following response from Suez Cement Group of Companies (SCGC) on 1 June 2017]

SCGC, subsidiary of HeidelbergCement, was subject to a number of ungrounded allegations; whereby, we would like to clarify the actual facts, as follows: The protesters were not Tourah Cement (TPCC) staff members, but subcontractors of a security firm that served our plant till 30/04/2017, which is the expiry date of our contract with the service provider. TPCC was subject to armed robberies by armed gangs, and most recently a TPCC staff member was shot dead. This prompted the Company to reconsider its security arrangements and not to renew the contract of the security service provider after its expiry on 30-04-2017, in the light of its inability to provide security service for the Company's property and staff. However, the subcontractors who did not have any contractual relationship with TPCC started a sit-in at the company’s premises that continued for 55 days. The protesting persons (intruders) have threatened TPCC staff, interrupted maintenance works and prevented engineers and workers from performing their duties. TPCC therefore found itself obliged to report the incident to the police (Prosecution) and arrest warrants were issued for four protesters.