Eight-year-old bride suffered internal injuries, bleeding, after marriage to 40-year-old man in Yemen. Forcing Yemeni girls into arranged weddings has long, troubled history.
By Deborah Hastings / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Tuesday, September 10, 2013, 11:45 AM
MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP/Getty Images
Women in Yemen demonstrate in 2010, supporting a law banning marriage for girls under age 17. The legislation, designed to address a longstanding practice of forcing girls into arranged weddings, was ultimately repealed.
A young girl in Yemen died after having sexual relations with a 40-year-old man who became her husband in an arranged marriage, according to media reports.
The 8-year-old was identified as “Rawan” and died from torn genitals and severe bleeding in the northwest city of Hardh, Gulf News reported, citing Yemen media accounts.
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The child lived in a tribal area that borders Saudi Arabia. Human rights organizations have called for the arrest of the husband, the news site Al Bawaba said.
Yemen has often been criticized for allowing girls to be forced into arranged marriages.
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Human Rights Watch reports that 14% of girls in Yemen are married before age 15, with 82% married before they are 18.
The country passed a law in 2009 setting the minimum age for marriage at 17. It was later repealed after conservative lawmakers said it went against Islamic teachings.
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Groups all over the world are working to snuff out this archaic and disgusting practice, but its proving difficult. The impoverished country is gripped by the practice of selling off children to be married; poor families find themselves unable to say no to “bride-prices” that can be hundreds of dollars for their daughters.
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