Article 308: Jordan scraps marriage loophole for rapists

A law which protected rapists from punishment if they married their victims has been scrapped in Jordan.

The Jordanian cabinet revoked Article 308 on Sunday, after years of campaigning by women's activists, as well as Muslim and Christian scholars and others.

The law had meant rapists could avoid a jail term in return for marrying their victim for at least three years.

Its supporters said the law protected a victim's honour and reputation.

'A dream come true'

But last year, it was amended so a rapist could only marry his victim if she was aged between 15 and 18 and the attack was believed to have been consensual.

Then in February, a royal committee suggested the law should be scrapped in its entirety.

At the time, the move was welcomed by activist Lailla Naffa as a "dream that has come true," according to the Jordan Times.

'My only hope from marrying him was to make my baby safe'

Noor - not her real name - was just 20 when she was raped by a 55-year-old man.

He was her boss when one day, she complained of a headache. After taking the two pills he offered her, she lost consciousness.

"I couldn't remember what happened next; I wake up and find myself naked and raped," she told women's rights campaign group Equality Now.

"I couldn't tell my family what had happened. I cried and cried not knowing what to do. At that moment, I realised that my family will be devastated."