SUSPENDED JAIL FOR ‘FALSE’ RAPE CLAIM

PARALIMNI: A Cypriot court yesterday handed a British teenager a four-month suspended prison sentence after convicting her of falsely accusing a dozen Israeli tourists of gang rape. The 19-year-old, who could have faced up to a year in jail, smiled and hugged family at the end of a trial that sparked protests in Britain and calls for tourists to boycott the island. Lawyers for the woman said the case was littered with investigatory and legal mistakes and issues, including repeated refusals by the judge to consider whether she was raped. – AFP