Rape as Weapon of War Is UN Focus After Libya Woman’s Plight
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It took a video going “viral” of a Libyan woman being dragged from a Tripoli hotel -- shouting that she’d been raped for two days by 15 men -- to put a face and name to a weapon of war that dates back at least to the founding of ancient Rome.
Defying social norms that can turn rape victims into outcasts, Iman al-Obeidi went public with her story. Her allegations of torture at the hands of soldiers loyal to Muammar Qaddafi spread fast via Facebook and Twitter.