Too young to wed? Yemen weighs marriage law

In recent years, about 14 percent of girls in Yemen were married before age 15.

By The Associated Press | Sanaa

An international rights group says a law setting 18 as the minimum age to get married will be proposed in Yemen and has urged its passage.

Human Rights Watch said in a statement that the draft law will be presented to the government Sunday by the Legal Affairs Minister Mohammed al-Mekhlafi. It says the law will be reviewed by the Cabinet before it is submitted to parliament.

In a December 2011 report, the group said about 14 percent of girls in Yemen were married before age 15. It also said 52 percent were wed before they turned 18.

Nadim Houry, an official at Human Rights Watch, says the draft bill is "a real beacon of hope for the thousands of Yemeni girls vulnerable to being married off while still children."

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