“Apple Faces Legal Fire in US Over Congo Conflict Minerals”
A US-based advocacy group has filed a lawsuit in Washington, claiming that Apple uses minerals connected to conflict and human rights abuses in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda, even though Apple denies these claims. The group, International Rights Advocates (IRAdvocates), has previously sued Tesla, Apple, and other tech companies over where they get cobalt, but US courts dismissed that case last year. In France, prosecutors also dropped a case against Apple’s subsidiaries in December due to insufficient evidence. Meanwhile, a related criminal complaint in Belgium is still being investigated. Apple has denied any wrongdoing, saying it told its suppliers to stop sourcing materials from the DRC and neighboring Rwanda. It did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the latest complaint. IRAdvocates, a Washington-based nonprofit that tries to use litigation to curtail rights abuses, said in the complaint filed on Tuesday in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia that Apple’s supply chain still includes cobalt, tin, tantalum and tungsten linked to child and forced labour as well as armed groups in the DRC and Rwanda. DRC: Key Source of…















































