Pelicot has become a symbol of the fight against sexual violence in France, and she’s seen as a hero to many victims for waiving her anonymity, letting the trial be public and appearing openly before the media. She has attended every day of the trial, where she has sat in a room full of men accused of raping her.

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.

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.

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