Dutch woman convicted, deported from Qatar after reporting rape case

A Dutch woman has been deported from Qatar after reporting to the police claiming she was raped.

The 22-year-old was convicted by a court in the Asian country of having sex outside marriage and also handed her a suspended sentence and fined her $824 (£580) before she was sent packing from the oil rich country.

Her lawyer said her drink had been spiked at a Doha hotel in March and she had woken up in a stranger’s flat, where she realised she had been raped.

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During a holiday in the emirate, she went out with a friend for drinks at a hotel where the sale of alcohol was permitted, according to her lawyer, Brian Lokollo.

“She went dancing but when she returned to the table after the first sip of her drink, she realised someone had added something to her glass,” he said.

The woman did not feel very well and she later woke alone in an unfamiliar flat and “realised to her great horror that she had been raped”, Mr Lokollo added.

Her alleged attacker, who said the sex was consensual, was sentenced to 100 lashes for having sex outside marriage.

He will be given a further 40 lashes for consuming alcohol.

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