A US court has heard an appeal by multi-national companies seeking to dismiss a case against them over their role in apartheid-era South Africa.

一家美国法院接受了几家跨国公司的联名诉讼请求，该请求试图摆脱关于他们在南非种族隔离时期所扮演角色的一件诉讼官司。

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IBM is among the companies contesting the lawsuit

Companies including Daimler, General Motors and IBM are questioning whether US courts have jurisdiction司法权，审判权 over events that took place in other countries.

The lawsuit against the firms was filed several years ago by black victims of white minority rule.

Their lawyers have been seeking up to $400bn (£248bn) in compensation赔偿，报酬.

The plaintiffs原告 bringing the lawsuit argue that the corporations violated human rights by assisting South Africa's former apartheid种族隔离 government.

They have argued that the companies knew the apartheid-era government would use their products.

Last year a US court said the case could go ahead against a limited number of companies under the Alien Tort Claims Act, an old law allowing foreigners to sue in the US courts.

But German automaker Daimler said on Monday the charges were "inadmissible不许可的，难承认的 and unfounded."

A spokeswoman for the group was quoted by AFP news agency as saying that "no American party was implicated³ and nothing took place on American territory", and that the company had operated with the backing of the German government of the time.

South Africa ended its opposition⁴ to the case in September, shortly after President Jacob Zuma took office.

The previous president, Thabo Mbeki, had opposed the case on the grounds that it might put off推迟，阻止 foreign investors⁵.