May 26, 2026

French rape survivor Gisèle Pelicot says she is “deeply shocked” after three teenage boys spared custodial sentences for the rape of two girls in Hampshire, a ruling now heading to the Court of Appeal. The girls, aged 15 and 14, were attacked in separate incidents in Fordingbridge by two 14-year-olds, with a third boy, then 13, convicted over the second assault. The judge said he wanted to avoid criminalising the “very young” boys — but the case has ignited fury over justice, accountability and what punishment really means in crimes this grave. Pelicot saluted one girl’s courage in speaking out.

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