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| Ayia Napa Briton guilty over false rape claim | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| A 19-year-old British woman has been found guilty of lying about being gang-raped in Ayia Napa, Cyprus, by Israeli youths. | A 19-year-old British woman has been found guilty of lying about being gang-raped in Ayia Napa, Cyprus, by Israeli youths. |
| She had been arrested after withdrawing an allegation that she was attacked by 12 young Israelis in a hotel in July. | She had been arrested after withdrawing an allegation that she was attacked by 12 young Israelis in a hotel in July. |
| The woman had said Cypriot police made her falsely confess to lying about the incident - but the police denied this. | The woman had said Cypriot police made her falsely confess to lying about the incident - but the police denied this. |
| She was found guilty on a charge of causing public mischief, at a court in Paralimni. | She was found guilty on a charge of causing public mischief, at a court in Paralimni. |
| The judge at the Famagusta District Court adjourned sentencing until 7 January. She could face up to a year in jail, but her lawyers have asked for a suspended sentence. | The judge at the Famagusta District Court adjourned sentencing until 7 January. She could face up to a year in jail, but her lawyers have asked for a suspended sentence. |
| The family's lawyer, Michael Polak, told BBC News that "there were a number of bases for appealing the decision". | |
| He said those reasons included the court relying on a retraction statement which was given when no lawyer was present, which he said was a breach of European human rights law. | |
| He also criticised the handling of the case by Judge Michalis Papathanasiou, who he said refused to hear any evidence about whether the alleged rape took place. | |
| Prosecutors said the woman willingly wrote and signed a statement retracting her claims 10 days after making the initial allegations. | |
| The woman told the court this happened under duress with the threat of arrest and that she had been denied access to a lawyer. | The woman told the court this happened under duress with the threat of arrest and that she had been denied access to a lawyer. |
| Twelve Israelis were arrested in connection with the allegations but were later released and returned home. | Twelve Israelis were arrested in connection with the allegations but were later released and returned home. |
| The Briton spent more than a month in prison before she was granted bail at the end of August, but had not been allowed to leave the island. | The Briton spent more than a month in prison before she was granted bail at the end of August, but had not been allowed to leave the island. |
| The trial began at the start of October - with the verdict delayed until now. | The trial began at the start of October - with the verdict delayed until now. |
| 'Living nightmare' | |
| BBC Europe correspondent Kevin Connolly said the woman's family spent Christmas with her on the Mediterranean island. | BBC Europe correspondent Kevin Connolly said the woman's family spent Christmas with her on the Mediterranean island. |
| Earlier this month, her mother told the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme the past few months had been a "living nightmare". | |
| She said her daughter, who was in Cyprus for a working holiday and had been due to start university after the summer, had post-traumatic stress disorder and the symptoms had become "much, much worse" since the alleged rape. | |
| She also criticised what she saw as a lack of support from the authorities, saying that her daughter's human rights had been "violated the whole way through" the process. |