LAHORE: Pakistani police detained 15 people for questioning , after two armed men gang raped a woman in front of her children after her car broke down on a deserted highway.
The arrests followed the incident in which the two men are said to have also stolen cash and jewelry from the woman before fleeing the scene. None of the 15 was thought to be an mugger. The police said the woman had locked her car doors when she ran out of fuel but the attackers broke a car window and dragged her outside where they raped her before her terrified children.
But a shocking televised statement, recently appointed Lahore police chief Umar Sheikh blamed the victim for traveling alone with her two children after midnight without checking whether her car had enough fuel. His comment drew nationwide condemnation, although he also vowed to arrest the rapists within 48 hours.
Gang rape is rare in Pakistan, although sexual harassment and violence against women is not uncommon. Nearly 1,000 women are killed in Pakistan each year in so-called “honor killings” for allegedly violating conservative norms on love and marriage.
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