// BBC UK NEWS — CRONACA
Military training sites to be investigated following rape and abuse claims at Army college
The investigation will look at 10 Army establishments, including the Army Foundation College in Harrogate where teenage recruits train
An independent investigation is being carried out into 10 military training sites in England, following claims of rape and sexual assault at an Army college for under-18s.
In August, four young women told the BBC they had been sexually assaulted and harassed at the Army Foundation College, in Harrogate, North Yorkshire.
One said she had been raped by several fellow junior soldiers in an attack that lasted hours.
The Armed Forces Commissioner, Polly Miller-Perkins, who is carrying out her first investigation in the role, has called the allegations "absolutely appalling".
She will visit the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS) - where all officers in the British Army are trained - and Britannia Royal Naval College, in Dartmouth - where the Royal Navy's prestigious officer training base is located. She will also visit the Army Foundation College, where the youngest recruits are trained.
The commissioner has the power to visit UK defence sites unannounced and request information from the government.
She can compile reports and command the attention of the defence secretary and Parliament regarding issues she feels need exposure.
Miller-Perkins said her recommendations will be made public, but critics have questioned whether her findings will lead to change.
One survivor of sexual assault, who attended the Army Foundation College, told the BBC she had no confidence in the process.