scholarly literature Academic publishing is the subfield of publishing which distributes academic research and scholarship. Most academic work is published in academic journal articles, books or theses. The part of academic written output that is not formally publis ...

and

criminology Criminology (from Latin , 'accusation', and Ancient Greek , ''-logia'', from λόγος ''logos'', 'word, reason') is the interdisciplinary study of crime and deviant behaviour. Criminology is a multidisciplinary field in both the behaviou ...

, gang rape, also called serial gang rape, party rape, group rape, or multiple perpetrator rape,Ullman, S. E. (2013). 11 Multiple perpetrator rape victimization. Handbook on the Study of Multiple Perpetrator Rape: A Multidisciplinary Response to an International Problem, Miranda A.H Horvath, Jessica Woodhams (Editors), 4, Chapter 11; is the

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault involving sexual intercourse, or other forms of sexual penetration, carried out against a person without consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or against a person ...

of a single victim by two or more violators.Neumann, Stephani. Gang Rape: Examining Peer Support and Alcohol in Fraternities. Sex Crimes and Paraphilia. Hickey, Eric W., 397-407 Gang rapes are forged on shared identity,

religion Religion is a range of social system, social-cultural systems, including designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics in religion, ethics, or ...

ethnic group An ethnicity or ethnic group is a group of people with shared attributes, which they collectively believe to have, and long-term endogamy. Ethnicities share attributes like language, culture, common sets of ancestry, traditions, society, re ...

, or race. There are multiple motives for serial gang rapes, such as for sexual entitlement, asserting sexual prowess, war, punishment, and, in up to 30% of cases, for targeting racial minorities, religious minorities, or

s. Gang rapes can be part of genocidal rape or

ethnic cleansing Ethnic cleansing is the systematic forced removal of ethnic, racial, or religious groups from a given area, with the intent of making the society ethnically homogeneous. Along with direct removal such as deportation or population transfer, it ...

campaigns.

Gang rape in literature

Hebrew Bible

The

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' Sodom and the story of the Levite Concubine in Gibeah (presented as a doublet with mimicking literary structure to the former). Both instances result in the judgement of

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

through destruction and war respectively.

Perpetrator characteristics

Gang rapes are typically perpetrated by two or more men, and tend to have somewhat different characteristics than rapes by individuals. For instance, gang rapists tend to be younger and are more often repeat offenders, and the gang is more likely to be under the influence of

drug A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via insufflation (medicine), inhalation, drug i ...

s or

alcohol Alcohol may refer to: Common uses * Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds * Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life ** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages ** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...

. Gang rapes are more violent on average compared to its individual counterpart, with significantly more severe sexual and non-sexual injuries to the victim. The gang members also typically dehumanize the victim more before and during the rape.Ullman, Sarah (1999). A comparison of gang and individual rape incidents. Violence and victims, 14(2), pp. 123–133Porter, L. E., & Alison, L. J. (2001). A Partially Ordered Scale of Influence in Violent Group Behavior An Example From Gang Rape. Small Group Research, 32(4), pp. 475–497 Gang rapes are almost always premeditated in their intent, target victim(s),

social proof Social proof (or informational social influence) is a psychological and social phenomenon wherein people copy the actions of others in choosing how to behave in a given situation. The term was coined by Robert Cialdini in his 1984 book '' Influe ...

, and psychological causes. Social factors such as

civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

s, hate propaganda, and ethnic conflicts increase the rate of gang rape. Rape gang members often have a binding force such as the same race, or place of residence thereby forming a close-knit

peer pressure Peer pressure is a direct or indirect influence on peers, i.e., members of social groups with similar interests and experiences, or social statuses. Members of a peer group are more likely to influence a person's beliefs, values, religion and beh ...

group, encouraged by the behavior of their fellow criminals. Gang rape can result from a group form of criminal spin, in which the group starts with less serious offenses which ultimately lead them to go well beyond their initial intention. In a 2013 study based on 25-year crime data from US and

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, between 10% and 20% of all rapes were gang rapes. Less than one in three gang rapes are reported, while less than 1 in 20 attempted but failed gang rapes are reported.

Motives

Sexual entitlement and entertainment

A 2013 ''Lancet'' report found that among the motives for rape were sexual entitlement and seeking of entertainment. Associated factors in the crime included alcohol misuse,

poverty Poverty is a state or condition in which an individual lacks the financial resources and essentials for a basic standard of living. Poverty can have diverse Biophysical environmen ...

, personal history of childhood victimization, need to prove

heterosexual Heterosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between people of the opposite sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, heterosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions ...

performance, dominance over women, and participation in gangs and related activities. , according to the report, most cases were not reported to law enforcement, and just 23% of single or multiple perpetrator rapes that were reported by the victims ended in prison sentence. The 1886 Mount Rennie rape case in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, Australia falls in this category.

As an act of war

Gang rapes during

s and ethnic riots take added dimension of becoming a means of

revenge Revenge is defined as committing a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. Vengeful forms of justice, such as primitive justice or retributive justice, are often differentiated from more fo ...

, sending a message to the victims' community, inducing fear in the opponent, and creating a sense of solidarity among the soldiers or militants or the violent group.Miller, Jody, & Glassner, Barry (1997). The ‘inside’and the ‘outside’: finding realities in interviews. Qualitative research, pp. 99–112, chapter 8 At least 20,000 women were raped or gang raped and afterwards killed during the

Nanjing Massacre The Nanjing Massacre, or the Rape of Nanjing (formerly Chinese postal romanization, romanized as ''Nanking'') was the mass murder of Chinese civilians, noncombatants, and surrendered prisoners of war by the Imperial Japanese Army in Nanji ...

, also known as the Rape of Nanjing, during the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945, following a period of war localized to Manchuria that started in 1931. It is considered part ...

(1937-1945). Major ethnic conflicts and wars within the last 50 years have witnessed a campaign of gang rapes. Rapes by Soviet soldiers and the Mahmudiyah rape and killings by American soldiers are examples of such

war crime A war crime is a violation of the laws of war that gives rise to individual criminal responsibility for actions by combatants in action, such as intentionally killing civilians or intentionally killing prisoners of war, torture, taking hostage ...

s. The Congo war saw thousands of gang rapes every week, with each relief center reporting 10 or more daily victims of gang rape with battering of women. The

Rwandan genocide The Rwandan genocide, also known as the genocide against the Tutsi, occurred from 7 April to 19 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. Over a span of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Gre ...

of 1994 witnessed numerous gang rapes by soldiers. The

Bosnian war The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...

during the 1990s saw a similar campaign of gang rapes.Stiglmayer, A. (Ed.). (1994). Mass rape: The war against women in Bosnia-Herzegovina, University of Nebraska Press In the 1990s, the

Kashmir Kashmir ( or ) is the Northwestern Indian subcontinent, northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term ''Kashmir'' denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir P ...

region which was a battlefield between Jihadists and the

Indian armed forces The Indian Armed Forces are the armed forces, military forces of the India, Republic of India. It consists of three professional uniformed services: the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force.—— Additionally, the Indian Ar ...

also saw a number of gang rapes which were perpetrated by both sides of the conflict to instill fear in the population of each side. In the 2000s, civil war-torn countries such as

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

and

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

reported high rates of gang rapes by government soldiers, security forces, insurgents, and

militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

s.Farr, Kathryn. "Extreme war rape in today’s civil-war-torn states: A contextual and comparative analysis." Gender Issues 26.1 (2009): pp. 1–41 Similar incidents have been recorded in

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

, and

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

. During the recent Russian-Ukrainian war, especially after the start of the full-scale Russian invasion, numerous cases of gang rapes of Ukrainian women and men, including children, by Russian soldiers were recorded. It is alleged that there were several cases of rape and sexual assault on the October 7th attack by Hamas soldiers. In the aftermath in which Israel began arresting Palestinian civilians and bombing the

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...

, dozens of alleged cases of sexual assault and rape by IDF soldiers against Palestinian detainees of all ages—both male and female—were recounted by prisoners.

As punishment

A 2013 Lancet report on rape and gang rape in

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea, officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is an island country in Oceania that comprises the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and offshore islands in Melanesia, a region of the southwestern Pacific Ocean n ...

, and

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

found that the crime was committed for various motives, including as a means to inflict punishment on the victim. Traditionally, the

Cheyenne people The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. The Cheyenne comprise two Native American tribes, the Só'taeo'o or Só'taétaneo'o (more commonly spelled as Suhtai or Sutaio) and the (also spelled Tsitsistas, The term for th ...

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

used gang rape as punishment for female transgressions. A similar practice existed among the

Munduruku people The Munduruku, also known as Mundurucu or Wuy Jugu, are an indigenous people of Brazil living in the Amazon River basin. Some Munduruku communities are part of the Coatá-Laranjal Indigenous Land. They had an estimated population in 2014 of 13,7 ...

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. In the

Mpumalanga Mpumalanga () is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. The name means "East", or literally "The Place Where the Sun Rises" in the Nguni languages. Mpumalanga lies in eastern South Africa, bordering Eswatini and Mozambique. It shares bor ...

province of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

, there are instances of gang rape as punishment. In

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

, gang rape has been reported to have been ordered as punishment.

Religious or racial factors

Though having the same race or religion often acts as a binding force for creating a close-knit serial rape gangs, studies reported that 30% of these shared-identity rape gangs specifically targeted people of another religion or race.

Gang rape by country

:''This is an incomplete list of countries, where government or media have acknowledged the problem of gang rape.'' A study found that gang rapes involved more

and drug use, night attacks and severe

sexual assault Sexual assault is an act of sexual abuse in which one intentionally Physical intimacy, sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or Coercion, coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their w ...

outcomes and less victim resistance and fewer weapons than individual rapes. Another study found that group

s were more violent and had greater resistance from the victim than individual sexual assaults and that victims of group sexual assaults were more likely to seek crisis and police services, to contemplate

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

and seek

psychotherapy Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of Psychology, psychological methods, particularly when based on regular Conversation, personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase hap ...

than those involved in individual assaults. The two groups were about the same in the amount of

use and drinking during the assault. Porter and Alison have analyzed 739 gang rape cases from US and UK, and found over 20% of the gang rape victims died from injuries from the gang rape. Gang rape is sometimes stereotyped in media as a crime of poor, minorities, or culture; however, gang rape incidence rates are high in wealthy

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary sc ...

campus A campus traditionally refers to the land and buildings of a college or university. This will often include libraries, lecture halls, student centers and, for residential universities, residence halls and dining halls. By extension, a corp ...

es, among non-minorities and every culture.Sanday, P. (2007). Fraternity gang rape: Sex, brotherhood, and privilege on campus. New York University Press,

Bangladesh

A 2013 Lancet study reports 1.9% of all rural men in

have committed multiple perpetrator rape (gang rape) of a woman who was not a partner, compared to 1.4% urban men. 35% of those who have committed gang rapes against women have also committed additional rapes where the victim was a man. The motives of rape included a combination of reasons. Two thirds of the gang rape perpetrators claimed

entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and Interest (emotion), interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but it is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have deve ...

as their motive, 30% claimed they participated in gang rape out of anger and to inflict

punishment Punishment, commonly, is the imposition of an undesirable or unpleasant outcome upon an individual or group, meted out by an authority—in contexts ranging from child discipline to criminal law—as a deterrent to a particular action or beh ...

on the victim, while 11% indicated the crime followed

alcohol consumption Drinks containing alcohol (drug), alcohol are typically divided into three classes—beers, wines, and Distilled beverage, spirits—with alcohol content typically between 3% and 50%. Drinks with less than 0.5% are sometimes considered Non-al ...

Brazil

In the state of

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

alone, over 6,000 rapes are reported every year (or about 37 per 100,000 people). Nationwide, the rape rate varied between 26 and 32 per 100,000 women in 2009. The arrest rates on rape complaints, was 4% in Rio.Rape in Brazil still an invisible crime, Fabiola Ortiz, Inter Press Service (June 24 2013)
; Quote "The civil police reported that in the first four months of 2013 there were 1,822 rapes committed in the state, while only 70 persons were arrested for these crimes." About 19.6% of 2011 rapes were gang rapes. In 2016, more than 30 men drugged and gang raped a 16-year-old girl and later posted photos and a video to boast about it online.

Canada

Peer pressure and sexual aggression are among the cited reasons for the crime. Since 1983,

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

does not track rape or gang rape statistics separately, but tracks and reports Sexual Assault Tier 3 which includes both rape and gang rape. The average Sexual Assault Tier 3 victim rate in Canada was 15 per 100,000 women, according to a 2013

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and culture. It is headquartered in ...

article about violence against women.

China

A Lancet study reports, in an online survey of 980 Chinese men, 2.2% of them admitted to having committed gang rape (multiple perpetrator rape) of a non-partner woman. About 36% of the perpetrators had raped more than one woman, 50% of those who had committed gang rape had raped both one partner as a single perpetrator as well as a non-partner during a gang rape, while 32% had gang raped a woman and raped a man. The study also found that 90% of the rapists were in the 15–29 age group at the time they perpetrated the first rape. In July 2013, Li Tianyi, the son of Chinese general Li Shuangjiang, was charged with four other men to being part of a gang rape. This case raised significant public anger over seemingly privileged treatment of elite gang rape criminals.

Egypt

Over two dozen gang rapes were reported during civil protests in

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

from January to March 2013; however, activists claim that many more gang rapes often go unreported because most women are too ashamed to go to the police or even tell their relatives. During July 2013 at Tahrir Square, mobs assaulted and gang raped at least 46 women in 4 days. A Dutch journalist was also gang-raped in Tahrir Square. A similar gang rape and gang beating was reported by an American journalist in 2011. In a separate survey, over 90% of Egyptian women claimed to have experienced sexual violence in their lifetime.

France

Between 5000 and 7000 gang rapes are reported in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

every year. In

banlieue In France, a banlieue (; ) is a suburb of a large city, or all its suburbs taken collectively. Banlieues are divided into autonomous administrative entities and do not constitute part of the city proper. For instance, 80percent of the inhabitant ...

s organised gang-rapes are referred to as ''tournantes'', or "pass-arounds". One of the first people to bring public attention to the culture of gang rape was Samira Bellil, who published a book called '' Dans l'enfer des tournantes'' ("In Gang Rape Hell"). In October 2012, two girls in

Fontenay-sous-Bois Fontenay-sous-Bois () is a Communes of France, commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. Name The name Fontenay was recorded in the Middle Ages as ''Fontanetum'', meaning "the spring ...

on the outskirts of

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

reported experiencing daily gang rapes in the high-rise tower blocks, sometimes by scores of boys. One witness described 50 boys "queuing" to rape her. 10 of the 14 defendants who were minors at the time of gang rape were acquitted, while the remaining 4 adults found guilty were given 0 to 12 months in prison. This case shocked the country. In 2014, the case of a Canadian tourist allegedly gang raped by four police officers in Paris received international attention. In 2024, during the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...

, an Australian woman was raped on a

street by five men. The 25-year-old woman with a partially torn dress took refuge in a kebab shop in the Pigalle district after the incident.

Germany

India

As with other countries,

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

does not collect separate data on gang rapes. Rapes are also suggested to be underreported. The gang rape of a 23-year-old student on a public bus, on 16 December 2012 has focused international attention on India's legal system, especially laws pertaining to the protection of women. It sparked large protests across the capital of India,

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

. Several other case of

child A child () is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking ...

gang rapes have been also reported, such as the Kathua rape case. The large scale protests resulted in amendments in rape laws in India by way of Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013 and formation of "The Nirbhaya Fund", designed to be used for schemes by different states to ensure women's safety and security at public places, a one-stop centre for their grievances, a helpline and other measures. There have been reports of gang rape of tourists in India like the Jharkhand tourist rape case. During the instability of the heavily political and wartime era of the

Maratha Empire The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern India, early modern polity in the Indian subcontinent. It comprised the realms of the Peshwa and four major independent List of Maratha dynasties and states, Ma ...

in the 18th century, the soldiers of the large Maratha armies engaged in wartime sexual violence against women during their campaigns in all corners of India. Upon the spotting of a beautiful woman, up to five or six soldiers would violate her. Women threw themselves to suicide to avoid such a fate and those who resisted had their breasts cut off.

Indonesia

Reported cases of gang rape include Jakarta International School gang rape of a six-year-old, gang rape of a Malaysian student in

, and the

Aceh Aceh ( , ; , Jawi script, Jawoë: ; Van Ophuijsen Spelling System, Old Spelling: ''Atjeh'') is the westernmost Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. It is located on the northern end of Sumatra island, with Banda Aceh being its capit ...

gang rape case where the victim was charged with adultery when she reported the crime. A Lancet study of

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

and

Jayapura Jayapura (formerly Hollandia (1910-1962), Kota Baru (1962-1963), Soekarnopura (1963-1968)) is the capital city, capital and List of Indonesian cities by population, largest city of the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of Papua (provi ...

city on

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

island, found gang rape prevalence rate to be 2% and 6.8% of all Indonesian men respectively who, at some point in their lifetime, have committed multiple perpetrator rape. About 52% of the perpetrators had raped more than one woman, 64% of those who had committed gang rape had raped both partner as single perpetrator as well as non-partner during a gang rape, while 12% had gang raped a woman and raped a man. The study also found that 90% of the rapists in Indonesia were in the 15–29 age group when they committed their first rape.

Iran

Many incidents of gang rapes have been reported in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. In several cases, the police officials have blamed the victim for not wearing ''

hijab Hijab (, ) refers to head coverings worn by Women in Islam, Muslim women. Similar to the mitpaḥat/tichel or Snood (headgear), snood worn by religious married Jewish women, certain Christian head covering, headcoverings worn by some Christian w ...

'', and in one case arresting the victim and two activists, who were trying to bring attention to the gang rape. While official statistics on reported and pending gang rapes in

are not published by the Iranian government, public hangings for gang rapes are routinely reported in Iranian newspapers.

Malaysia

A 15-year-old schoolgirl in

Ketereh Ketereh is a town and parliamentary constituency in Kelantan. It is located in the southern half of Kota Bharu District, roughly halfway between metropolitan Kota Bharu and Machang, Kelantan, Machang along Malaysia Federal Route 8, Highway 8. Th ...

Kelantan Kelantan (; Kelantan-Pattani Malay, Kelantanese Malay: ''Klate''; ) is a state in Malaysia. The capital, Kota Bharu, includes the royal seat of Kubang Kerian. The honorific, honorific name of the state is ''Darul Naim'' ("The Blissful Abode"). ...

, was gang raped by more than 30 men.T Leong
Malaysian teenager gang-raped by 38 men
Reuters

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

reported about 3,000 rape cases in 2012, a rape incidence rate of about 10.7 rapes per 100,000 people. About 52% of these victims were less than 16 years old. Like other nations, Malaysia does not segregate rape and gang rape cases.

Nigeria

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

reports thousands of gang rapes every year. In 2011, the ABSU gang rape, in which the gang videotaped their crime, drew widespread attention and protests inside Nigeria. The prevalence of group rape has been proposed as a significant contributor to spread of sexual diseases and

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

Pakistan

The 2013 National Crime Data report for

suggest a current rape rate of 8.4 women per 100,000 population, of which about 10% were gang rapes. In some cases, such as Mukhtar Mai gang rape in Muzaffargarh, village elder's council (''jirga'') in

have ordered that the girl in a family is gang-raped as a means of punishing her brother, and this punishment was then carried out in public with everyone watching. In 2011, Pakistan's Supreme Court freed 5 men who committed the gang-rape because their action was on orders of the village council. Other gang rape cases reported in 2013 include a

Bahawalpur Bahawalpur (Urdu: ; ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the 13th largest city of Pakistan and List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, 8th most populous city of Punjab. Bahawalpur is the capital of Bahawalpur Division. Founded in ...

gang rape, a

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

gang rape, a

Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...

gang rape, and the

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

gang rape of a girl with

polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

, among others. In 2018, a

trans woman A trans woman or transgender woman is a woman who was assigned male at birth. Trans women have a female gender identity and may experience gender dysphoria (distress brought upon by the discrepancy between a person's gender identity and their ...

from

was kidnapped and raped by eleven men, who filmed the assault and shared it on

social media Social media are interactive technologies that facilitate the Content creation, creation, information exchange, sharing and news aggregator, aggregation of Content (media), content (such as ideas, interests, and other forms of expression) amongs ...

Papua New Guinea

A Lancet study reports 14.1% of all men admitted to having committed gang rape (multiple perpetrator rape) of a non-partner woman sometime in their lifetime. 44% of these perpetrators had raped more than 1 woman over their lifetime. In

, 25% of the first rape was committed at a juvenile age less than 15, while in 70% of the cases the perpetrator's age was 15–29 at the time of first crime.

Saudi Arabia

The Qatif rape case was a 2006 gang rape of a teenage girl by seven men. The case attracted international attention because the victim was initially ordered to receive 200 lashes but the ruling was overturned by the monarch after backlash.

South Africa

Gang rapes occur frequently in

, and in certain parts it is called ''jackrolling''. South Africa reported over 64,000 rapes in 2012, or about 127.5 women per 100,000 population. With one woman raped every 4 minutes, South Africa has world's highest rape incidence rate per 100,000 women. Between 10% and 33% of all rapes are gang rapes involving three or more people. About 25% of youth near

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

described gang rape as recreational and fun. In certain parts of

where boys are often involved in gang rapes, rape rates are higher. 40% of reported rape cases are on children below the age of 12. Vogelman and Lewis report 44% of rapists in South Africa have engaged in gang rape. The National Institute of Crime Rehabilitation of South Africa claims only 1 out of 20 rapes are reported in South Africa, suggesting 1,300 women are raped every day. A 2010 nationwide survey reported that about 27% of all South African men above the age of 18 have raped a woman in their lifetime one or more times, while 8.9% of all adult men have participated in a gang rape.Rachel Jewkes et al
Why, when and how men rape: understanding rape perpetration in South Africa
, South African Crime Quarterly, Vol. 34, December 2010, pp. 23–31 The gang rape prevalence rate varied significantly in different provinces of South Africa; for example, in

Eastern Cape The Eastern Cape ( ; ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, and its largest city is Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth). Due to its climate and nineteenth-century towns, it is a common location for tourists. It is also kno ...

, 13.9% of men had gang raped a woman who was not a partner. In February 2013, a 17-year-old girl was gang raped, mutilated and left to die in a town near

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

. This led to widespread protests.

Spain

Reported gang rape cases include gang rape of a British tourist in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

where one of the rapists (described by the victim as Arabic) was a 70-year-old man, and gang rape in Huelva of a 13-year-old girl with a mental disability. The

La Manada rape case The La Manada rape case, also known as the wolf pack case, began with the gang rape of an 18-year-old girl on 7 July 2016 during the Festival of San Fermín, San Fermín celebrations in Pamplona, Navarre, Spain. The case drew intense public scruti ...

in 2016 led to significant public outcry.

Sweden

In 2013, ''Forskning & Framsteg'' ''(FoF)'', a Swedish popular science magazine, published an article reporting that "The evidence suggests that gang rapes in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

is increasing - despite the decline in violent crime in general."Dramatisk ökning av antalet anmälda gruppvåldtäkter
. ''Forskning & Framsteg'' (2013-10-09). Retrieved on 2017-01-25. ''FoF'' went on to report that, "The increase, which primarily occurred in the 2000s, may have to do with "rape with multiple perpetrators" from 2004, classified as "serious crime", which means that more obscure cases fall into this category." ''FoF'' further reports that "National Council's investigator, Klara Hradilova-Selin, said that "developments could at least partly be interpreted in terms of an actual increase." Although there are a number of other important reasons why we are seeing more reports, such as, Klara Hradilova-Selin goes on to say, "more women dare to go the police" and an "increased alcohol consumption". Finally ''FoF'' goes on to report that in the 1990s "In the gang rape of three or more perpetrators 39 percent are foreign born." The statistics for gang rapes were not investigated by Swedish authorities after 2006. On 21 January 2017, in

Uppsala Uppsala ( ; ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the capital of Uppsala County and the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inhabitants in 2019. Loc ...

, a group of Arab Facebook users allegedly gang-raped an unconscious woman for several hours. The crime was stopped when viewers of the Facebook live feed realized what was happening and phoned the police, who entered the apartment and interrupted the crime still in progress. In March 2018, newspaper ''

Expressen (''The Express'') is one of two nationwide evening newspapers in Sweden. Describing itself as independent liberal, was founded in 1944; its symbol is a wasp and its slogans are "it stings" or " to your rescue". The newspaper awards the cultu ...

'' investigated gang rape court cases from the two preceding years and found that there were 43 men having been convicted. Their average age was 21 and 13 were under the age of 18 when the crime was committed. Of the convicted, 40 out of the 43 were either immigrants (born abroad) or born in Sweden to immigrant parents. Another investigation by newspaper

Aftonbladet (, lit. "The evening paper") is a Swedish language, Swedish daily tabloid newspaper published in Stockholm, Sweden. It is one of the largest daily newspapers in the Nordic countries. History and profile The newspaper was founded by Lar ...

found that of 112 men and boys convicted for gang rape since July 2012, 82 were born outside Europe. The median age of the victims was 15, while 7 out of 10 perpetrators were between 15 and 20.

United Arab Emirates

In several cases in 2013, the courts of the

UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a federal elective monarchy made up of seven emirates, with Abu Dhabi serving as i ...

have sentenced the gang raped woman to prison under its laws. For example, a British woman, after she reported being gang raped by three men, was charged with the crime of drinking

in UAE; an Arab woman was sentenced to one year in prison for illicit sex after she complained of gang rape; an Australian woman was similarly sentenced to jail after she reported gang rape in the UAE, while a Norwegian woman was jailed for illicit sex when she reported rape by Arab men. In another case, an 18-year Arab woman withdrew her complaint of gang rape inside a car by six men when the prosecution threatened her with a long jail term for consensual sex with multiple men. According to

ABC News ABC News most commonly refers to: * ABC News (Australia), a national news service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation * ABC News (United States), a news-gathering and broadcasting division of the American Broadcasting Company ABC News may a ...

, a French teenage boy was gang raped by three Dubai men. The authorities demanded that the tourist confess he is gay and that he asked for sex. The boy insisted he was raped and diplomatic pressure led to the arrest and conviction of the gang members.

United Kingdom

A number of gang rapes have taken place in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, although the UK authorities had not separately collected data on gang rapes until the 2011

Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre A child () is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking countries, the legal definition of ''child ...

report on localised grooming entitled "Out of Mind, Out of Sight", but which only deals with adolescent victims. However,

Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's London boroughs, 32 boroughs. Its name derives from the location of the original ...

expressed concern in 2009 over the rise of 'gang sex attacks' in London, detailing an increase of 71 cases in 2003/2004 to 93 cases in 2008/2009. Media reports of gang rapes in the UK are often racially charged since late 2000. This due to a particular pattern of repeated non-white perpetrated gang rapes in the metropolitan areas. The Rochdale sex trafficking gang would later epitomise the phenomenon. The

Home Office The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety and policing, border security, immigr ...

report of 2013 described these cases as ' howinga particular model... of organised, serious exploitation and abuse that involves predominantly Pakistani-heritage men grooming and abusing predominantly white British girls.' The report stresses that the Government does not believe 'localised grooming' is intrinsic of any culture, religion, and or race, despite acknowledging the phenomenon. In March 2014, Crime Prevention Minister

Norman Baker Norman John Baker (born 26 July 1957) is a Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Democrat politician in the United Kingdom who was the Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Lewes (UK Parliament constituency), Lewes in ...

described "ground breaking work" to identify women and girls who can get drawn into gangs. "Girls associated with gangs can face sexual violence and we have provided £1.2m for 13 Young People's Advocates to support those at risk," he said on the launch of a report by the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), a think-tank established in 2002 by

Iain Duncan Smith Sir George Iain Duncan Smith (born 9 April 1954), often referred to by his initials IDS, is a British politician who was Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom), Le ...

, another Cabinet minister. Baker said the government had set up a network of more than 70 people with experience of dealing with gangs to work with 33 of the worst affected areas of the country, including 20 in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. In one case cited by the CSJ report, a schoolgirl was abducted and sexually assaulted by nine males because she criticised a gang member. The report found that girls as young as eight were being used to carry drugs while female gang members in their teens were being pressured to have sex with boys as young as 10 to initiate males into gangs. A 2014 report by the Office of the Children's Commissioner suggested that almost 2,500 children had been known to be victims of child sexual exploitation by gangs and groups. In July 2018

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, more commonly known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom and the head of the Home Office. The position is a Great Office of State, maki ...

Sajid Javid Sir Sajid Javid (; born 5 December 1969) is a British former politician who served as Secretary of State for Health and Social Care from June 2021 to July 2022, having previously served as Home Secretary from 2018 to 2019 and Chancellor of the ...

ordered research into the particular characteristics of grooming gangs. However, as of March 2020 this report has not been released with the

claiming it is ‘not in public interest’ to release the findings.

United States

The US reports about 85,000 rapes a year, or an average of 27.3 rapes per 100,000 population. There is a rape in the US every 6.2 minutes. As with other countries, the US does not collect separate data on gang rapes; Vogelman and Lewis estimate 25% of all rapes in the US are gang rapes. Another source indicates 21.8% of American rapes are gang rapes. A

Roger Williams University Roger Williams University (RWU) is a private university in Bristol, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1956, it was named for theologian and Rhode Island cofounder Roger Williams. The school enrolled approximately 4,400 undergraduate and ...

study estimates from survey of crime data that 16% of all male rapists in the US participated in a gang rape crime. A 15-year-old girl in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

was gang raped on Facebook live in 2017 while watched by over 40 people. On a separate occasion, two teenage girls, one aged 15, the other aged 16, in

La Crosse, Wisconsin La Crosse ( ) is a city in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. Positioned alongside the Mississippi River, La Crosse is the largest city on Wisconsin's western border. La Crosse's population was 52,680 as of the 202 ...

, were gang raped by at least 11 men. Some examples of gang rapes reported in local media in 2013 include the Cleveland, Texas gang rape, Richmond gang rape, Vanderbilt University gang rape,

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

gang rape, St Paul gang rape,

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

gang rape/murder, among others.