MTN Group’s legal battle over allegations it supported militant groups in Afghanistan has moved to the discovery phase after a US court rejected the telecoms giant’s bid to reconsider an earlier ruling.
This, after the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York on Friday denied MTN’s requests to reconsider, or permit an immediate appeal of, its earlier decision allowing certain claims under the US Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) to proceed in Zobay versus MTN Group.
The Zobay case, together with the related Long versus MTN Group Limited case, will now proceed to discovery, where the parties exchange information and evidence relevant to the claims.
In a statement yesterday, MTN stressed that the latest rulings were procedural and did not constitute a finding of wrongdoing or liability against the company.
The cases form part of four ATA lawsuits involving MTN in the US: Cabrera, Zobay, Long, and Chand & Davis.
According to MTN, there had been no material developments in the Cabrera and Chand & Davis cases.
In 2019, MTN was accused of violating US anti-terrorism laws over allegations relating to its operations in Afghanistan.
The complaints were filed in a US federal court on behalf of families of US citizens killed in attacks in Afghanistan. Five other companies were also named.
The complaints alleged MTN paid bribes to al-Qaida and the Taliban to avoid the cost of securing its transmission towers.
The alleged payments helped finance a Taliban-led insurgency that resulted in attacks in Afghanistan between 2009 and 2017, according to the allegations.
MTN has previously denied being a culpable participant in the attacks and has said it would vigorously defend the proceedings.
The company says, under US legal procedures, it could not challenge the factual allegations during the motion-to-dismiss stage.
It will now have an opportunity to produce and seek evidence to rebut the plaintiffs’ allegations during discovery.
After discovery, the parties can seek summary judgement, asking the court to decide the case based on the evidence without a full trial. If no summary judgement applications are made, or if they are denied, the cases will proceed.
MTN says it remains confident the evidence would demonstrate it was not a culpable participant in the attacks.
“MTN will continue to defend the proceedings vigorously, consider all available legal options and update shareholders on material developments as appropriate,” it notes.
The company also expressed sympathy for people injured or who lost loved ones in conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
MTN began its withdrawal from the Middle East in 2020 as part of a strategy to refocus on its African operations.
The group subsequently exited Yemen in 2021 and sold its Afghanistan business in 2024, completing its exit from its consolidated Middle East operations.
MTN has also been working to formalise its departure from Syria, while its minority investment in Iran remains subject to an attempted exit.
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