Cafferty: Saudi judge refuses to annul marriage of 8-year-old girl

Last week in the Cafferty File we told you about a new Afghan law that legalizes rape. This week’s outrage story comes courtesy of another one of our allies in the Mideast, Saudi Arabia — where a judge has refused for a second time to annul a marriage between an eight-year-old girl and a 47-year-old man.

The same judge rejected a petition back in December from the girl’s mother, who was trying to get a divorce for her daughter. A relative of the girl tells CNN that the Saudi judge says he’s sticking by his earlier verdict, and that the girl can petition the court for a divorce once she reaches puberty.

The mother’s lawyer says that it was the eight-year-old girl’s father who arranged the marriage in order to settle his debts with the man. The judge required the girl’s husband to sign a pledge that he wouldn’t have sex with her until she reaches puberty. Right.

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