Cyprus court delays trial of five Israelis accused of raping British woman

A Cyprus court deferred the trial of five Israelis accused of raping a British woman on Thursday pending the submission of crucial evidence by prosecutors. Police detained the five Israeli teenagers, aged 19 and 20, after a British woman stated they raped her after forcing her into a hotel room in the Ayia Napa resort on August 3. They have been detained since. All five are charged with six charges of kidnapping, assault, and rape. The trial, which was supposed to begin on Thursday, was postponed because important evidence was not delivered to the accused’s counsel. Because that information was lacking, the five did not enter a plea. That included a DNA report, photographic material, fingerprint reports and a statement from a sixth individual, one of the lawyers for the accused said. “Before we have the whole picture of what my clients are facing they haven’t answered, they haven’t pleaded,” said lawyer Maria Neophytou, who represents three of the defendants. The lawyer for the other two men said his clients were not in the room when the alleged assault took place. Relatives of the defendants crowded into the small courtroom in the town of Paralimni on Thursday, where the Criminal Court was in session. Women’s advocacy groups are closely following the case due to the treatment of a British rape victim three years ago. Last year, Cyprus’s Supreme Court acquitted a British woman who had been wrongfully convicted by a lower court of lying about being gang raped by 12 Israeli men in July, 2019. (With inputs from agencies)