Footage has emerged of a woman being publicly whipped in Sudan for wearing trousers.

The video offers a rare glimpse of the type of punishment inflicted on women who break the country's strict morality code.

The victim was punished under Sharia law for wearing trousers under her Islamic clothing.

The footage shows her crawling on the ground, raising her arm to try to ward off the attacks and screaming as the whip strikes.

The public punishment sparked protests among females against laws they said humiliated women.


Dozens of them were arrested.

The governor of Khartoum said there had been a mistake in the way the victim's punishment had been carried out.

Sky's foreign affairs editor Tim Marshall said: "It is a frequent occurrence but very rarely filmed.

"The punishment is under laws brought in 1991 for indecent behaviour - it is justice under those laws."

As well as pain and humiliation, the video also shows, how for some, it is entertainment, as a man is shown laughing at the woman after she is whipped.

Sudan's president, Omar al-Bashir is wanted for alleged war crimes.

He came to power in an Islamist-backed coup in 1989. Two years later he extended Sharia laws.

The laws are enforced by his puritanical public order police, who seek out what are known as "trouser girls".

"Despite claims of morality they have a reputation for dishonesty and demanding sexual favours," Marshall explained.

Last year, a Sudanese woman, Lubner Hussein, became an overnight heroine for many women in Africa and the Middle East, when she challenged the laws and dared the courts to flog her.

She ended up being fined for wearing the trousers to court.

"The government appears to be furious that these images were filmed, despite ordering thousands of such whippings every year," Marshall said.

"As a result, its launched an investigation saying there was a mistake in the way the filming was carried out."

However, it is unclear if this refers to the filming, the public spectacle, or the fact that on at least one occasion the woman is struck in the face.