- Irish rugby players Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding were both cleared of rape
- The stars had denied raping a woman following a night out in Belfast in 2016
- After the verdict, #IBelieveHer was trending on Twitter to support the woman
- Several protests will now take place across Ireland after four men were cleared
Protest rallies will be carried out across Ireland today after the #IBelieveHer hashtag trended on Twitter in support of the woman at the centre of a rugby rape trial.
Irish internationals Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding were cleared of rape yesterday following a nine-week trial at Belfast Crown Court.
They were accused of sexually assaulting a woman when they went back to Jackson's flat after a night out in the capital city.
The court heard the pair were in a WhatsApp group which discussed having a 'spit roast' and said sex with the woman was 'like a merry-go-round'.
The Belfast rally has been organised by Reclaim the Night Belfast, which is a group which is campaigning against harassment and gender-based violence.
On Facebook, the group wrote: 'The feminist movement is calling a rally in response to the impact of the recent rape trial in Belfast.
'There is a lot of anger and upset among women who have observed the treatment of the [woman] in this case and found it harrowing and re-traumatising.'
The jury was told that Olding allegedly wrote 'we are all top sh****rs, before adding: 'It was like a merry-go-around at a carnival.'
He also wrote: 'There was a bit of spit roasting going on last night fellas,' the court heard.
It is also alleged that Jackson replied on the same WhatsApp messaging service: 'There was a lot of spit.'
Messages in their group included jokes about 'pumping birds' and a photograph was shared with the caption 'Love Belfast s****.'
In one message, McIlroy posted a picture of himself and three girls who had been at the after party where the rape was alleged to have happened.
In another message also read out, McIlroy boasted: 'Pumped a bird with Jacko on Monday, roasted her, then another on Tuesday night.'
The hashtag #IBelieveHer was trending in the UK, Ireland and worldwide on Twitter just hours after the verdicts were returned.
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