Three officers of the Shiite-dominated police force have been cleared of allegations they raped a young Sunni woman in their custody and will instead be rewarded for their troubles, a government statement said Tuesday. The statement by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's office accused "certain parties" of fabricating the allegation to discredit the security forces during the ongoing Baghdad security operation.
According to the AP, the 20-year-old married woman, Sabrin al Janabi, said she was attacked after police commandos took her into custody Sunday in the western Baghdad neighborhood of Amil. She was taken to a police garrison and raped, she charged.
"It has been shown after medical examinations that the woman had not been subjected to any sexual attack whatsoever and that there are three outstanding arrest warrants against her issued by security agencies," the government statement said.
"After the allegations have been proven to be false, the prime minister has ordered that the officers accused be rewarded," it said.