Government sued over alleged repeated rape of child in Nauru detention

It's alleged an Iranian boy was raped by an older male multiple times on Nauru and his mother threatened with harm if she reported the abuse.

The government is aiming to remove all asylum seeker children from Nauru by the end of the year. Source: AAP

A child asylum seeker who was allegedly raped three times while on Nauru is suing the Commonwealth government and detention centre operators.  

The Iranian boy arrived in Australia by boat with his mother and was transferred to Nauru in October 2013, where he was allegedly raped three times by an older male over six weeks the following year. 

Lawyers for the Iranian boy, who was 10 at the time, say the alleged repeated abuse shows a failure of duty of care. 

According to the lawsuit filed by Maurice Blackburn on behalf of the boy, he suffers from post-traumatic stress, has suicidal tendencies and has self-harmed.