UN Rights Chief Alleges French Soldier Sexually Abused Girl

United Nations staff turned up a case of sexual abuse of a girl by a French soldier in Central African Republic

French soldiers patrol the Mettatai region in Northern Mali on March 18, 2013. AP Photo/ECPAD, Arnaud Roine

GENEVA—United Nations staff turned up a case of sexual abuse of a girl by a French soldier in Central African Republic, the U.N. human rights chief said Thursday, in the latest claim of sexual abuse by foreign troops in the poor, unstable African country.

France’s military has already been rocked by accounts by children as young as 9 of French soldiers giving them food or water in exchange for sex. While French authorities knew of those cases last summer, they only came to light publicly after Britain’s Guardian newspaper reported them in April. No arrests have been made.

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