09 April,2010 12:26 PM IST | | Agencies
A 12-year-old girl bled to death three days after a 'swap marriage' here in Yemen's northern province, a report has said.
Child bride Ilham Mahdi Shui al-Asi died last week of severe internal bleeding from a ruptured womb, which caused a fatal haemorrage. She was married for just three days to a man in his 20s in what is known as a 'swap' marriage in the region, the report said Thursday.
A girl from al-Asi's husband's family was married to her brother, according to a statement by a leading human rights groups in Yemen, which is calling for imposition of a legal age for marriage.
"This girl was a martyr to the arranged marriages of minors which are still taking place in this country," the al-Shaqaiq rights group said.
Another 12-year-old girl had died during childbirth recently.
Attempts to set a minimum marriage age of 18 have failed in the country in recent times due to opposition from Islamist groups and tribal leaders.
