Trial of dozens of men accused of raping an unconscious woman, Dominique Pelicot, whose husband repeatedly drugged her has highlighted the difficulties that sexual violence victims can face in France.

PARIS (Reuters) -Hundreds of people, mostly women, gathered in cities across France on Saturday in support of Gisele Pelicot whose husband is on trial, accused of drugging her and recruiting dozens of strangers to rape her in a case that has shocked the nation.

The mayor of a French town making headlines for the trial of dozens of men accused of rapes that occurred there for almost a decade has apologized for comments that appeared to downplay the case