A group of ten sentenced of online harassment directed at Brigitte Macron
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A French judicial body has convicted ten people for engaging in the cyber-bullying of Brigitte Macron, the partner of French President, Emmanuel Macron.
The defendants faced charges of circulating untruths regarding her gender identity and sexuality, in addition to publishing hurtful comments about the pair's 24-year age gap.
The court handed down suspended jail terms of a maximum of eight months to the convicted individuals. The full ruling has still to be made public.
A circulating conspiracy theory suggesting that Brigitte Macron is a transgender woman has spread widely since her husband's first electoral victory in 2017.
This recent ruling in France comes as the Macrons initiating a legal action for defamation in the US against political commentator Candace Owens, who has likewise promoted similar conspiracy theories about the Brigitte Macron's identity.
Their legal filing states that Owens brushed aside any factual proof that refuted her assertions choosing instead to platforming known conspiracy theorists.
Owens has regularly repeated these allegations on her digital program and online platforms, and in March 2024 declared that she would risk all her credibility on her belief that Mrs. Macron is biologically male.
Brigitte Macron initially encountered her now-husband when she taught at his lycée.
The couple tied the knot in 2007, when the man who would become president was 29 and she was 54.
