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Investigating magistrate designated in Belgium in Congo dispute minerals case

An investigating magistrate has been designated in Belgium after Democratic Republic of the Congo in December filed criminal grievances implicating Apple subsidiaries of using socalled conflict minerals in their supply chain, a. legal representative for Congo stated Monday.

I can validate that the Belgian examining judge has been. designated, said Leo Fastenakel, one of the attorneys representing. the Congolese federal government in Belgium.

Our company believe he is a serious and strenuous judge, he included,. without naming the magistrate.

Any choice on whether offenses have been committed. will be based on an examination carried out by the. examining magistrate, another lawyer on the case informed. Reuters in December.

Congo is a major source of tin, tantalum and tungsten,. so-called 3T minerals used in computer systems and mobile phones. However. some artisanal mines are run by armed groups associated with. massacres of civilians, mass rapes, robbery and other crimes,. according to United Nations experts and human rights groups,. leading advocates to urge business to avoid these dispute. minerals.

An ask for comment has been sent out to Apple.

In December, the iPhone maker stated that it strongly challenged. the claims and had actually instructed its providers previously in 2024 not. to utilize the minerals in concern sourced from Congo or Rwanda.

Congo's attorneys stated at the time that they invited Apple's. declaration with satisfaction and care..

(source: Reuters)