Gang Rape of a Young Afghan Refugee Woman in Pakistan; Five Suspects Arrested

PHOTO: REUTERS via express tribune

Police in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan have announced that a 21-year-old Afghan refugee woman was gang raped in the Haripur district of the province, and five men have been arrested in connection with the incident.

The incident took place on Thursday (11 September) when the victim, whose husband lives abroad and who was living alone in a rented house, was attacked on her way to visit relatives.

According to the police, a man named “Bacha” forcibly took the woman to a maize field, after which four of his accomplices assaulted her one after another.

In her statement, the victim said: “I was ready to leave when four others arrived and one after another assaulted me. When I resisted, one of them punched me in the face.” She sustained injuries to her face and lips.

Pakistan police identified the suspects as Nadi, Rozi, Khan Sher, Javid, and Nasir, and said that all of them are Afghan refugees living in the same area. An initial report from the trauma center in Haripur confirmed the occurrence of sexual assault, and the case has been registered under Article 375A of Pakistan’s Penal Code, which stipulates the death penalty or life imprisonment for gang rape.

The incident has sparked widespread outrage among local residents, and the victim’s family has demanded exemplary punishment for the perpetrators. Human rights activists warn that Afghan refugee women in Pakistan, in an increasingly hostile environment marked by social pressures and forced deportations, are facing greater risks of violence, abuse, and exploitation.