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Saudi government: Rape victim had illegal affair

(CNN) — Under fire for its treatment of a rape victim, the Saudi Arabian government on Saturday said that the woman had an illegitimate relationship with a man who was not her husband, and that both exposed themselves to this heinous crime.

In a statement, the kingdom’s Ministry of Justice said it was forced … to clarify the role of the woman and the man who was accompanying her in this case and its circumstances because of what it claimed were false media reports.

The 19-year-old woman was initially sentenced to 90 lashes for meeting with the man — described by her attorney as a former friend from whom she was retrieving a photograph.

The seven attackers, who abducted the pair and raped her, received sentences ranging from 10 months to five years in jail.

When the woman appealed her sentence, a Saudi court more than doubled it. The Qatif General Court also increased the sentence for the rapists, to two to nine years in prison.

The case has drawn international attention, provoked outrage in the West and cast light on the treatment of women under Saudi Arabia’s strict Islamic law. Watch why official reaction has been muted

The ministry has previously said the woman’s punishment was increased after further evidence came to light against her when she appealed her original sentence.

She was convicted of violating the kingdom’s Islamic law by not having a male guardian with her.

The attacks took place in March 2006, when the woman was 18 and engaged to be married.

The government statement said that according to the woman’s signed confession, she called a man on her cell phone and asked to be with him alone, illegally. The two met at a marketplace, then rode in the man’s car to a dark area of the beach, and stayed there for some time, the ministry said.

The group of attackers saw her in a compromising situation, her clothes on the ground, the statement said. The men at this point assaulted her and the man with her.

The woman knew that being alone with a man who wasn’t her husband was illegal, and therefore she violated the covenant of marriage. However, the woman was engaged — not married — at the time.

After the incident, the woman and the man did not come forward about the assaults or press charges until someone contacted the woman’s husband telling him what happened, and about his wife’s affair and adultery, the ministry said. She then confessed … the husband therefore came forward to the police and formally complained nearly three months after the incident.

The woman and her companion exposed themselves to this heinous crime, causing the crime to take place because of their violations of the pure Sharia ruling — the country’s strict Islamic law.

The case was handled through regular court procedures, and the woman, her male companion and the attackers all agreed in court to the initial sentences, the government said in a previous statement.

The woman’s husband told CNN earlier this week that from the onset, my wife was dealt with as a guilty person who committed a crime. She was not given any chance to prove her innocence or describe how she was a victim of multiple brutal rapes.

Asked about the ministry’s statement Saturday, the husband declined to comment publicly.

The woman’s attorney, Abdulrahman al-Lahim, has said his law license was revoked to punish him for speaking to the Saudi-controlled news media about the case. Attempts by CNN to reach al-Lahim Saturday were unsuccessful.

Al-Lahim previously said the woman met the man at a shopping mall in order to retrieve an innocuous photograph from him. He has also said the man was blackmailing his client and forced her to have the meeting to save her engagement and avoid embarrassment.

The woman’s husband did not find out about the crime until his friends told him the rapists were bragging about it in the Qatif community, The Arab News reported in its Sunday editions, citing a source close to the case.

Earlier this week, the woman’s husband blamed his wife’s treatment on a judge with a personal vendetta. Al-Lahim told CNN that the head judge in the three-judge panel that considered the case was opposed to his client from the beginning. Both said they believe the man forced the woman to meet with him, but said she was not allowed to present that in court.

The government has said that al-Lahim was punished by a disciplinary committee for exhibiting disrespectful behavior toward the court.

Under Saudi law, women are subject to numerous restrictions, including a strict dress code, a prohibition against driving and a requirement that they get a man’s permission to travel or have surgery.

Al-Lahim has been ordered to attend a disciplinary hearing next month at the ministry, where he faces a possible three-year suspension and disbarment, according to Human Rights Watch.
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Police crack down as former PM prepares to return to Pakistan

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) — As Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf was confirmed for a third term Saturday, the prime minister he overthrew in 1999 announced his plans to return home Sunday.

But hours before Nawaz Sharif was to land in Lahore, police launched a crackdown on his supporters.

Several hundred were arrested at their homes early Sunday.

Tens of thousands of people were expected to greet Sharif when he arrives ahead of parliamentary elections in early January. But the government warned that it would stop his supporters from entering Lahore. Police roadblocks were being set up on streets leading into the city.

Sharif — who has been in exile in Saudi Arabia for seven years and leads the opposition party, Pakistan Muslim League — tried to return to Pakistan in September.

But he was quickly deported by the government of Musharraf, who ousted Sharif in a bloodless coup eight years ago.

Saudi authorities have been pushing Pakistan to allow Sharif back in the country, and he is expected to fly home on a Saudi royal family plane, according to one of his deputies and a government source.

The Saudis also have provided him with a bulletproof car in Lahore.

This time, he will not be sent back, said Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, a Musharraf adviser, according to The Associated Press.

Convicted of tax evasion and treason after Musharraf seized power in 1999, Sharif was released in 2000 in exchange for agreeing to 10 years of exile in Saudi Arabia.

He kept his Pakistani citizenship, but has not been allowed to travel to Pakistan or directly take part in Pakistani politics.

When he arrives, Sharif plans to make a statement at the airport, visit the shrine of a Sufi saint, then go to his home in Lahore. He also plans to visit the grave of his father, who died while Sharif was in exile.

Another former Pakistani prime minister recently came back to Pakistan after years in exile. But Benazir Bhutto’s return was marred by violence. While traveling from the Karachi airport, her motorcade was attacked, killing 136 people. She was not hurt.

Sharif and Bhutto have said they will boycott the January elections as long as the state of emergency and suspension of the constitution ordered by Musharraf November 3 stays in place.

On Thursday, Pakistan’s Supreme Court — which Musharraf recently stacked with his allies — ruled against the last challenge blocking the ratification of last month’s presidential election.

On Saturday, the election commission officially notified the federal government that Musharraf won.

The move clears the path for him to take the oath of office for the third time, a spokesman for Musharraf said.
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Report: Hulk Hogan’s wife seeks divorce

CLEARWATER, Florida (AP) — Linda Hogan has filed for divorce from her wrestler husband Hulk Hogan, a newspaper reported Friday.

Hulk Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, told the St. Petersburg Times that he had no idea his wife had filed for divorce.

He was informed by a reporter that Pinellas County court records showed that the paperwork was submitted Tuesday.

Thank you for the great information, he told the reporter.

Family spokesman Adam Handelsman referred calls to another spokesman, who did not immediately respond Friday night.

My wife has been in California for about three weeks. … Holy smokes, Bollea later told the newspaper. Wow, you just knocked the bottom out of me.

The couple star in the VH1 reality TV series Hogan Knows Best, with their two children. Recent episodes show the normally close couple attending marital counseling, but they eventually reconcile.

On November 7, Hogan’s son, 17-year-old Nick Bollea, was arrested on reckless-driving charges after a car crash. Clearwater police said Bollea crashed his 1998 Toyota Supra on August 26 while street racing against a silver Dodge Viper driven by a friend. A report said Bollea was driving faster than 60 mph in a 40 mph zone.

Bollea’s passenger, John Graziano, was not wearing a seat belt and was critically injured. Bollea, who was wearing a seat belt, was not seriously injured.

The Hogans moved to a $12 million bayfront estate on Miami Beach in 2006 so their children, Brooke and Nick, could pursue singing and acting careers. They had previously lived in Clearwater, near Tampa.
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Firefighters make progress against blaze near Malibu

MALIBU, California (CNN) — A dangerous and dynamic wildfire in Southern California that left six firefighters hurt and destroyed dozens of homes grew to 4,500 acres Saturday evening, officials said.

But firefighters have been able to contain 25 percent of the blaze, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

Until the fire is knocked down, we can’t be sure what the next development will be, Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said at a news conference earlier.

About 10,000 people fled their homes in the Malibu area ahead of the flames, which began around 3:30 a.m. PT (6:30 a.m. ET) .

The fire has also knocked down power lines, said Los Angeles County Fire Chief Michael Freeman. About 1,700 firefighters were battling the blaze, aided by 23 aircraft.

An enormous number of resources were being devoted to the fight, said Malibu Mayor Jeff Jennings. Watch the mayor call the fire a ‘disaster’

I’m standing on my deck of my house here, and I can see four helicopters … all attacking the fire at once. So they are going after it in a hurry, there’s no doubt about that, he said.

It’s certainly not as bad as it could have been, said Jennings, who urged residents to listen to the radio, stay alert, stay vigilant.

The fire had destroyed more than 30 homes by Saturday evening. Watch houses engulfed in flames

Strong winds have been fanning the flames, a fire official told CNN.

Whenever these fires are pushed by … winds, it’s a like a blow torch with a hair dryer behind it, said Inspector Sam Padilla of the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

The fire started on a dirt road next to a paved highway in the Corral Canyon area, Freeman said.

Officials said that it’s unclear how the wildfire started, and that arson investigators were on the scene. See more photos of the flames

High winds and low humidity were impeding progress, Padilla said. Video images showed helicopters sucking water from swimming pools to fight the flames.

Mandatory evacuations remained in effect from Corral Canyon west to Trancas Canyon Road and from the coast on the south to Mulholland on the north. The Red Cross set up a shelter at Agoura Hills High School. Evacuated residents farther south were instructed to go to Channel Islands High School in Ventura County.

A resident who was not told to evacuate did so anyway, and he told CNN he thought his home had been destroyed.

Sia Hodjatie said the smell of smoke awoke him about 3:45 a.m. He and his family packed their pets into their car and started leaving the house an hour later.

When we were leaving, the fire was in our back door, Hodjatie said. My older son … said, ‘Dad, if we would have left 30 or 40 seconds more, we would have been baked here.’ And we saw the fire coming toward the house, and heavy smoke, and very, very uncomfortable situation.

Frank Angel and his wife told The Associated Press they had 15 minutes to get out of their house.

I ran out on the deck and I just saw a little fire and smoke up the canyon on the ridge [about a mile away], Angel told the AP. By the time we evacuated, it was already over the ridge. It spread faster than I’ve ever seen it.

Thick smoke billowed into the air and could be seen several miles from the flames, witnesses said. The fire is producing a tremendous amount of smoke, Pepperdine University official Jerry Derloshon told CNN.

Looking westward, where the fire was several miles away, he said, There’s so much smoke, it almost defies understanding.

Pepperdine students were being asked to relocate to a central location on campus as a precaution, he said.

Maurice Luque, a spokesman for the San Diego Fire Department, said their firefighters were ready in case the fire spreads there. The city is about 130 miles southeast of Malibu.

We’re very, very concerned. We’re on high alert. Our fire crews have been told to be ready to come in off duty. They all have their equipment with them, so they can report anywhere they’re needed.

We’re hoping and praying that the winds do not materialize down here, that we have no fires, and there’s no need for additional resources down here if something breaks. It’s a very tense, nervous situation, Luque said.

It was the second time in just over a month that fires ravaged the region. Last month’s fires charred more than 508,000 acres in several counties, destroying about 1,600 homes, causing 14 deaths and forcing 1 million people from their homes.
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Inter’s ‘fill-ins’ floor Atalanta

MILAN, Italy — Inter Milan went three points clear in Italy after beating Atalanta 2-1 at home on Saturday.

The Serie A champions rested star strikers Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Hernan Crespo, but their replacements Julio Cruz and David Suazo both scored in the opening half an hour before Sergio Floccari pulled one back for the visitors soon after.

Inter had been joined at the summit by Roma, who beat Genoa 1-0 earlier in the day.

And third-placed Fiorentina can cut the gap back to two points if they win at lowly Reggina on Sunday.

Atalanta’s fans had been barred from the San Siro stadium due to the recent crowd violence in Italy, with 5,000 children invited to sit in the stand usually reserved for visiting fans.

Argentine Cruz played in his Honduran strike partner on 10 minutes to open the scoring with a fierce near-post strike.

And Cruz pounced from close range on 30 minutes after Suazo’s looping shot beat Atalanta goalkeeper Ferdinando Coppola but came back off the post.

But Floccari gave the visitors hope with a superb goal in the 39th minute, volleying past keeper Julio Cesar from the edge of the penalty area after controlling the ball on his chest.

Atalanta finished the game with 10 men following Simone Inzaghi’s late dismissal shortly after Inter — unbeaten in 12 matches — brought on the fit-again defender Marco Materazzi for the first time this season.

We should have kept playing in the second half with the same intensity as we had in the first but it’s still good to win after struggling, Suazo said..

Roma kept up their title push after defender Christian Panucci, Italy’s match-winner against Scotland last weekend, headed a last-minute goal in Genoa.

Genoa almost took the lead in the second half when Matteo Paro hit the post with a curling effort from outside the box that had Roma goalkeeper Doni well beaten.

And 15 minutes from time, Genoa keeper Rubinho made a stunning double save to tip Mirko Vucinic’s header onto the bar and then block Daniele De Rossi’s follow-up with his outstretched leg.

Roma were missing four first-team regulars, including captain Francesco Totti, but coach Luciano Spalletti said: We have a situation where we can bring in players in place of those who normally play without affecting the team too much. Those absences gave those present the chance to shine.
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