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December 4, 2008 10:39:03 AM CST

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Saudi Rape Victim 'Crushed Human Being,' Husband Says

Posted Nov 21, 07 9:41 AM CST in Arts & Living,  Crime & Courts,  World 

(Newser) – The husband of the Saudi gang-rape victim sentenced to 200 lashes and 6 months in jail blamed one judge's vendetta—and not the Saudi judicial system itself—for her treatment "as a guilty person who committed a crime." He told CNN his wife has been a severely depressed, ill, "crushed human being" since the attack in 2006, when they were engaged. She's given up her education, and is too fragile to speak publicly.

The 24-year-old husband said her trial was a spectacle; the attackers were allowed to make offensive gestures and threaten his wife. "She was not given any chance to prove her innocence or describe how she was a victim of multiple brutal rapes." One judge, he said, was harsh throughout the case; he was hostile to, and finally dismissed, her lawyer, "who's a known human rights activist." 

Sources CNN, Reuters

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A woman gets in a taxi in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, Monday, Sept. 17, 2007. The Saudi Arabian rape victim given jail time and 200 lashes was unfairly punished because one of the judges had a personal vendetta,...   (Associated Press)
Two women crosses the street in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, Monday, Sept. 17, 2007. The Saudi Arabian rape victim given jail time and 200 lashes was unfairly punished because one of the judges had a personal...   (Associated Press)
An unidentified woman walks, fully veiled, along a Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, street on Nov. 15, 2006. The Saudi Arabian rape victim given jail time and 200 lashes was unfairly punished because one of the...   (Associated Press)
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rape • Saudi Arabia • Islamic Sharia law • courts • Saudi rape victim • justice


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