Twitter deletes video of rape of Ukrainian women shared by hopeful Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni | World News

A video showing a Ukrainian woman being raped by a migrant in Italy has been removed from Twitter after it was shared on the social media platform by prime minister candidate Giorgia Meloni.

The far-right leader who is leading the race to become ItalyHis next prime minister tweeted the blurry video late on Sunday saying she could not remain silent in the face of “this bout of brutal sexual violence”.

Ms Meloni explained on Twitter that she shared the clip, which was originally posted on an online newspaper, to “express solidarity with the victim, condemn what happened and obviously to demand justice”. .

However, she has been criticized by political opponents and human rights activists, who accuse her of causing further suffering to victims by sharing videos without her consent.

The post was taken down by Twitter on Tuesday morning and there was no immediate response from Ms. Meloni.

It was taken in the northern city of Piacenza, and local authorities said the 55-year-old woman was attacked early Sunday morning by an asylum seeker from Guinea.

Police confirmed the man had been arrested and said he was in custody as the investigation continued.

The video was shot by someone in an apartment overlooking the street and the image was blurred before being posted online, making it impossible to identify the victim, but audible. see her cry in the sound.

Italian authorities said they were looking into how the video was released.

Piacenza prosecutor Grazia Pradella said: “The dissemination in the media of videos depicting the details of the crime is being thoroughly investigated.

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The state watchdog tasked with protecting personal data said it was also looking into “possible liability on the part of those who, for various reasons and for different purposes, have (posted) it”. “.

Ms. Meloni and her far-right allies topped the polls ahead of the September 25 national election and was widely expected to win power.

Her Brotherhood Party looks set to take the most seats in parliament, putting her in the key position to become Italy’s first female prime minister.