The trial of a federal public servant who is accused of sexually assaulting a female Afghan who formerly worked for Canada in Afghanistan is under way.
Gilal Eldien Ali faces several charges that stem from allegations dating back to a period between 2011 and 2013 after the woman immigrated to Canada through a government program. The woman, whose identity is protected by a publication band, lived at the defendant’s home at the time that most of the alleged abuse took place.
Ali and the complainant met in
Afghanistan
when he was a civilian technical advisor working for Canadian International Development Agency in Kandahar from 2009 to 2012. Ali is now on leave from his job with Global Affairs Canada, according to CBC.
The woman recounted the alleged abuse she suffered in court last week.
“He called me his sex toy, a whore and a bitch,” the Afghan woman said,
according to CBC
.
Ali, who is an Ottawa resident, was back in court on July 22, when a witness testified that Ali seemed to have a parental relationship with the woman, and that she called him “daddy Gilal” in Afghanistan.
Under cross-examination, the witness, who worked with Ali in Afghanistan, said he had heard that things were “not going well” a few months after she had immigrated to Canada, but added that nothing pointed to her being sexually assaulted.
The court heard last week that it wasn’t long after the woman moved to Canada that the alleged abuse began, according to CBC.
Ali is also being sued by the woman.
In that lawsuit, she is seeking $1.75 million from Ali for punitive damages, mental suffering and loss of future or past economic gain, according to CBC.
The Afghan woman also sued the federal government for $1 million in damages. That lawsuit was settled out of court this summer, CBC reported.
The charges Ali faces
include sexual assault, sexual exploitation of a young person, assault, uttering threats and extortion.
The trial will resume on Sept. 16.
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