A collaborative investigation on the french arms trade.
A collaborative investigation on the french arms trade.
France is the third biggest exporter of arms in the world. Its arms trade, which is in principle prohibited, should be regulated by guarantees as to how its exported military equipment is used. In other words, France has an obligation to ensure that the arms it sends to foreign states are not used against civilians — a commitment enshrined in the 2008 European Common Position, and in the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). This treaty requires each signatory country, including France, to “not authorize any transfer of conventional arms … if it has knowledge at the time of authorization that the arms or items would be used in the commission of genocide, crimes against humanity, grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions of 1949, attacks directed against civilian objects or civilians protected as such.”
The FrenchArms investigation, led by Lighthouse Reports, in cooperation with Disclose and with the support of Arte, Mediapart, Radio France, and Bellingcat, demonstrates that a number of arms sold by France to foreign countries were used in conflicts in which violations of international human rights law and war crimes have been extensively documented.
The French arms project is the culmination of a collaboration between more than a dozen journalists and intelligence experts. We carried out this investigation using “open source” techniques; our team rigorously analyzed satellite images, posts on social media, and official communications.
The factory that produces the most pollution in France is using more coal than ever. In August 2025, ArcelorMittal Dunkirk took delivery of several thousand tonnes of coal from an extremely toxic mine in Mozambique. Some residents of the town of Moatize have been exposed to serious air pollution and seen their homes destroyed by blasts, an investigation by Disclose and Socialter can reveal.
PFAS have contaminated everything in 17 municipalities in the Ardennes and Meuse departments in northeast France, from soil to vegetables, rivers, fish and even people’s bloodstream, Disclose and France 3 can reveal. Tests conducted with a Montreal University laboratory show record levels of ‘forever chemicals’ in agricultural land. The pollution poses a “direct threat to health” according to a “restricted” memo.
