A British teen convicted by a Cypriot court of falsely accusing a group of 12 Israelis of gang rape was given a four-month suspended sentence on Tuesday, The Guardian reported.
The 19-year-old was also fined $150. She is expected to return to the UK later on Tuesday or Wednesday.
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"I have decided to give her a second chance," Judge Michalis Papathanasiou said, citing her age, psychological state, and dependency on antidepressants.
Last week, the teen was found guilty of having "willfully indulged in public mischief" by filing the false rape claim while on holiday in Ayia Napa in July.
The woman maintains she was a victim in the case. Her lawyer, Michael Polak, accused Cypriot authorities of a litany of rights failings and said that they would appeal the actual conviction in Cyprus' supreme court, stating that they will take the case to the European Court of Justice or the European Court of Human Rights if necessary.
British and Cypriot media outlets reported Monday that the woman will receive a presidential pardon if she is sentenced to prison.
Britain's Foreign Office has said it is "seriously concerned" about whether the woman received a fair trial, and the case has been taken up by rape survivors and rights groups, including in Israel.
Over 50 Israelis have flown to Cyprus to stand by the British woman.
"The minimum we can do is to be there to offer support, to show her that we believe her," Orit Sulitzeanu, executive director of the Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel, told The Guardian, adding that the protest was partly out of disgust that the "boys returned to Israel as heroes."
They demonstrated outside the Cypriot courthouse alongside local activists, shouting "Cyprus justice, shame on you," "stop blaming the victim" and "you are not alone," Sky News reported. Some held placards with the slogans "we believe you" and "don't be afraid."
The woman's mother says her daughter is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and hallucinations due to the trauma she has suffered from the case. That account was backed up by the report of a psychologist who evaluated the woman after the alleged rape and said her state of mind when she recanted the accusation was not properly taken into consideration during her trial.
