An Israeli hitchhiker was allegedly gang-raped near Manali in Kullu valley of Himachal Pradesh early on Sunday morning. The 25-year-old woman wanted to visit Kaza in Spiti valley and was offered a lift till Manali by six men in a taxi that did not have a number plate. She alleges that two of the men raped her at a location that she could not identify and then dropped her in Manali. The incident occurred in the wee hours of the morning, and the woman filed a complaint at the police station around 10 am along with a friend, reported The Times of India. Kullu superintendent of police (SP) Padam Chand said that a medical examination had been carried out and sent to Mandi for expert opinion.

However, the police are yet to find any clues as the woman could not provide much information about the vehicle and the accused. But they are confident of cracking the case soon as Manali and its surrounding areas are under the surveillance of high-definition CCTV cameras.

This is the third incident of rape reported by a foreigner in the past four years in Kullu district. In June 2013, a 29-year-old American woman was gang-raped by three Nepalese men who had offered her a ride from Vashisht to Manali in their truck.

In May 2012, a 22-year-old Australian woman claimed that she was raped in Kasol village by a man from Chandigarh whom she had befriended on Facebook. The victim had alleged that the man raped her in a hotel room when she was "unconscious" after attending a party.