8yr old Yemeni childbride dies of internal injuries after sex with 40yr old groom

* An eight-year-old child bride has died in Yemen of
internal bleeding sustained during her wedding
night after being forced to marry a man five times
her age, activists have claimed.
The girl, identified only as Rawan, died in the
tribal area of Hardh in northwestern Yemen, which
borders Saudi Arabia. Activists are now calling for
the groom, who is believed to be around 40 years
old, and her family to be arrested so they can face
justice in the courts.
They say arrests would help put a stop to the
practice of marrying very young girls to older men
in the impoverished region.
Angry Man, a blogger, posted that the man was
'an animal who deserved to be punished severely
for his crime'.
'All those who supported such a crime should also
be punished,' he added.
Another blogger, called Omar, wrote: 'Rawan’s
family members are not humans. They do not
deserve to have children.'
But another blogger, called 'Sad', appeared more
sympathetic to the custom. He wrote: 'Her family
and her groom could have waited for some time
before having this marriage,' Sad said. 'It was not
fair at all and the marriage should not have
happened even if some tribes believe that it is a
good custom.'
The practice of marrying young girls is widespread
in Yemen and has attracted the attention of
international rights groups seeking to pressure the
government to outlaw child marriages.
Yemen's gripping poverty plays a role in hindering
efforts to stamp out the practice, as poor families
find themselves unable to say no to 'bride-prices'
that can be hundreds of dollars for their daughters.
More than a quarter of Yemen's females marry
before age 15, according to a report in 2010 by
the Social Affairs Ministry.
Tribal custom also plays a role, including the belief
that a young bride can be shaped into an obedient
wife, bear more children and be kept away from
temptation.
In September 2010, a 12-year-old Yemeni child-
bride died after struggling for three days in labour
to give birth, a local human rights organisation
said.
Yemen once set 15 as the minimum age for
marriage, but parliament annulled that law in the
1990s, saying parents should decide when a
daughter marries.