British military police are now investigating claims by a young Dutch woman who says she was raped by a British officer at a party for naval personnel in Oslo in 2020, Trouw reported on Saturday.

The woman, who works for the Dutch navy, is taking the British navy to court for damages, saying it is responsible for the emotional damage she has suffered after being raped by the British officer two years ago.

The woman, who is 21, works on the Willemstad minesweeper which took part in a Nato mission in 2020. She says she was raped in a broom cupboard by the British officer during a carnival party for the crew of all the ships involved in the mission.

The woman, who was 19 at the time, reported the attack to the police in Oslo but they only handed the case over to the British authorities a year later, Trouw said.  Under Nato rules, member states are supposed to prosecute their own soldiers for crimes which they commit.

The Dutch public prosecution department was then told the case had been closed. Now, however, following questions from Trouw, the woman has been invited by the British military police to tell her story, the paper said.

Confirmation

A spokesman for the British military police has also confirmed an investigation into the rape is underway but declined to answer specific questions, the paper said.

Her lawyer told newspaper Trouw that the failure to prosecute is a ‘second trauma’ for his client, and that she is going to court in Britain because she wants to make a claim for damages. She also wants the British navy to admit that mistakes were made in her case.

Her story, Michael Ruperti said, shows that female soldiers who are the victim of sex crimes during international missions are poorly protected in law.