(CNN) A South Korean judge has ordered the Japanese government to pay damages to 12 victims of war-time sexual slavery, in a historic ruling over war atrocities that have strained the two countries' relationship for decades. The victims sued the Japanese government in 2016 for kidnapping, sexual violence, and torture during World War II. These girls and women forced into sexual acts of slavery are known as "comfort women." The practice was sanctioned and organized by the Japanese Imperial Army before and during World War II. But South Korea was a military dictatorship at the time, and many Koreans maintain the deal was unfair.

Source: CNN January 08, 2021 08:59 UTC