These are our allies and this is what they do to the victim of RAPE.

CNN) -- The Saudi Justice Ministry Tuesday issued a
"clarification" of a court's handling of a rape case and the increased
punishment -- including 200 lashes --meted out to the victim. Human rights groups want Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah to drop charges against the rape victim.

The case, which has sparked media scrutiny of the Saudi legal system,
centers on a married woman. The 19-year-old and an unrelated man were
abducted, and she was raped by a group of seven men more than a year
ago, according to Abdulrahman al-Lahim, the attorney who represented
her in court.
The woman was originally sentenced in October 2006
to 90 lashes. But that sentence was more than doubled to 200 lashes and
six months in prison by the Qatif General Court, because she spoke to
the media about the case, a court source told Middle Eastern daily
newspaper Arab News.
Al-Lahim told CNN his law license was
revoked last week by a judge because he spoke to the Saudi-controlled
media about the case. Watch the emotional toll the crime took on the rape victim »

In a statement issued to CNN, Saudi Ambassador to the United States,
Adel al-Jubeir said, "This case is working its way through the legal
process. I have no doubt that justice will prevail."
The
Justice Ministry acknowledged in its statement Tuesday that the
attorney is no longer on the case, saying he was punished by a
disciplinary committee for lawyers because he "exhibited disrespectful
behavior toward the court, objected to the rule of law and showed
ignorance concerning court instructions and regulations."
It
added that the permanent committee of the Supreme Judicial Council
recommended an increased sentence for the woman after further evidence
against her came to light when she appealed her original sentence.

The judges of that committee also increased the sentences for the
perpetrators based on the level of their involvement in the crime.
Their sentences -- which had been two to three years in prison -- were
increased to two to nine years, according to al-Lahim.
The
ministry also said it welcomes constructive criticism and insisted that
the parties' rights were preserved in the judicial process.
"We
would like to state that the system has ensured them the right to
object to the ruling and to request an appeal," the statement
continued, "without resorting to sensationalism through the media that
may not be fair or may not grant anyone any rights, and instead may
negatively affect all the other parties involved in the case."

The statement also described the progress of the woman's case and
explained that it was heard by a panel of three judges, not one judge
"as mentioned in some media reports."
It said the case was
treated normally through regular court procedures, and that the woman,
her male companion and the perpetrators of the crime all agreed in
court to the sentences handed down.
In Washington, State
Department spokesman Sean McCormack said U.S. officials had "expressed
our astonishment" at the sentence, though not directly to Saudi
officials. "It is within the power of the Saudi government to take a
look at the verdict and change it," he added.
White House
homeland security adviser Frances Townsend, who announced her
resignation Monday, called the case "absolutely reprehensible" but told
CNN's "American Morning" the Saudis deserve credit for their assistance
in battling terrorism. "This case is separate and apart from that, and
I just don't think there's any explaining it or justifying it," she
added.
The case has sparked outrage among human rights groups.

"This is not just about the Qatif girl, it's about every woman in Saudi
Arabia," said Fawzeyah al-Oyouni, founding member of the newly formed
Saudi Association for the Defense of Women's Rights.
"We're
fearing for our lives and the lives of our sisters and our daughters
and every Saudi woman out there. We're afraid of going out in the
streets.
"Barring the lawyer from representing the victim in court is almost equivalent to the rape crime itself," she added.

Human Rights Watch said it has called on Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah
"to immediately void the verdict and drop all charges against the rape
victim and to order the court to end its harassment of her lawyer."