One of four men accused of a high-profile gang rape...

One of four men accused of a high-profile gang rape in Pakistan said he was married to the woman at the time of the alleged offence.
In his defence application to a court in Punjab province, Abdul Khaliq said he was married to 30-year-old divorcee Mukhtaran Mai under an agreement brokered by village elders after he discovered her brother having sex with a member of his family, defence lawyer Mohammad Yakub said.
"He (Khaliq) said he had committed intercourse with Mukhtaran Mai, but it was within marriage," the lawyer told reporters outside the court in the town of Dera Ghazi Khan. The trial is closed to the public and press.
The alleged attack occurred in late June in the remote village of Meerwala in southern Punjab, where rapes and killings of women are common and often go unreported.Four men are on trial for rape and 10 others for involvement in the alleged crime.
All 14 men face the death penalty if found guilty.