The mayor of Mazan, a southern French town where Dominique Pelicot for years raped his wife, drugged her and invited dozens of strangers to rape her while she was unconscious, was accused of downplaying the victim's ordeal in remarks to the BBC.

Video of men allegedly raping a drugged Frenchwoman will not be shown at their trial to the public or journalists, the judge in the case ruled Friday.

Louis Bonnet, the mayor of Mazan in southern France, said he understands his remarks to the BBC were shocking.

One of more than 50 men accused of raping Frenchwoman Gisele Pelicot in a mass rape case that has shocked the world told her in court on Thursday that he was sorry for what he did.

The mayor of the French town where a man for over a decade brought strangers to rape his wife apologised on Friday for remarks that were criticised for playing down the ordeal of the victim.

CNN’s Saskya Vandoorne reports on the trial underway in France where more than 50 men are accused of raping Gisele Pelicot. Pelicot’s case has sparked outrage in France after her husband of 50 years admitted to drugging her and inviting dozens of men online to rape her.

Dominique Pelicot admitted to drugging his wife and recruiting dozens of strangers to rape her over nearly a decade, begging for his family's forgiveness, as he told a French court on Tuesday: "I am a rapist.

One of dozens of men accused of raping a Frenchwoman drugged unconscious by her husband told a court Thursday he realised something was wrong during their encounter that he now