Four Iraqi troops have been accused of raping a 50-year-old Sunni woman and the attempted rape of her two daughters in the second allegation of sexual assault leveled against Iraqi forces this week, an official said Thursday.
According to the AP, Brig. Gen. Nijm Abdullah said the attack allegedly occurred some 10 days ago in the northern city of Tal Afar during a search for weapons.
A lieutenant and three enlisted men denied the charge but later confessed after they were confronted by the woman, a Turkoman. Abdullah said a fifth soldier suspected something was wrong, burst into the house and forced the others to stop the assault.
"They have been referred to the judicial authorities so they can receive their just punishment," said Abdullah.
The woman appeared Thursday on the Qatar-based Al-Jazeera television, saying the troops asked her about certain individuals and accused her of lying to them. "They threatened me that if I did not cooperate they would ... cause me a scandal," she said.
Asked why she did not report the attack immediately, she replied: "Who do I complain to? No one allows us to complain."
This latest report follows an allegation Monday by a 20-year-old Sunni woman that she was raped by three Iraqi policemen after she was arrested during a search of her house in western Baghdad. She was taken to a police garrison where the attack allegedly occurred Sunday.
The government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki cleared the policemen after an investigation lasting less than a day.
