UN Announces 108 New Alleged Sexual Abuse Victims in CAR

By EDITH M. LEDERER, ASSOCIATED PRESS
UNITED NATIONS — Mar 31, 2016, 4:03 PM ET

The United Nations on Thursday announced 108 new alleged victims of sexual abuse, the vast majority of them minors, by peacekeepers in Central African Republic, and it called "shocking to the core" a report that three girls said a French military commander forced them to have sex with a dog.

The revelations dramatically widened the scope of a sexual abuse scandal that has persisted for months. France's U.N. ambassador, Francois Delattre, called the allegations "sickening and odious" and promised "exemplary disciplinary action" if they're proven true.

The latest allegations, dating from 2013 through last year, were first announced by a U.S.-based advocacy group, AIDS-Free World, late Wednesday. U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric on Thursday told reporters that the U.N. can't confirm the allegations involving a dog at this point but that investigations continue.

AIDS-Free World said Wednesday night that 98 girls in Central African Republic, also known as CAR, had reported being sexually abused between 2013 and 2015 by perpetrators who have left the country. It also said information on the alleged rape of a 16-year-old girl by a Congolese peacekeeper only three days ago in a hotel room has been turned over to the United Nations.

[font size=1]-snip-[/font]