Officers accused of rape cleared, angering Sunnis

BAGHDAD, Iraq – After a one-day investigation, the government cleared three policemen Tuesday of rape allegations brought by a married Sunni woman – a move that drew charges of a cover-up from Sunni leaders.

The government said a medical examination showed the 20-year-old woman “had not been subjected to any sexual attack whatsoever” and that three warrants had been issued against her for unspecified charges.

The statement gave no other details on the investigation but accused “certain parties” – a thinly veiled reference to Sunni politicians – of fabricating the allegation to discredit a U.S.-Iraqi security crackdown in Baghdad.

The government also said Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki “ordered that the honorable officers accused be rewarded.”

The woman appeared on Arabic language television stations Monday claiming she had been raped. She said the ordeal began Sunday when police commandos took her into custody in the western Baghdad neighborhood of Amil, accusing her of helping insurgents. She did not say the officers were Shiites, although they form the majority within the ranks of Iraqi police, especially elite commando units.

The swift exoneration of the three officers outraged many Sunnis.

“How can he reward those who committed a crime against the honor of Iraq?” Sunni politician Abdul-Kareem al-Samaraai said on Al-Arabiya television.

An aide to Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi, a Sunni, disputed the findings of the government probe and accused al-Maliki’s office of acting in haste by issuing the statement clearing the officers.

Omar al-Jubori said the statement was “inaccurate and full of holes.” He said the vice president’s staff and the Interior Ministry were looking into the case and would “have the final say in the matter” in a few days.