Ten individuals convicted of cyber-bullying directed at Brigitte Macron

A Paris court has ruled against ten people for engaging in the cyber-bullying of Brigitte Macron, the spouse of the President of France, Emmanuel Macron.

The those on trial faced accusations of disseminating fabrications regarding her gender identity and sexual orientation, in addition to making hurtful comments about the couple's age disparity of 24 years.

The court handed down suspended jail terms of a maximum of eight months to the convicted individuals. The detailed judgment has not yet been published.

A longstanding conspiracy theory alleging that Brigitte Macron is a trans woman has spread widely since her husband's first electoral victory in 2017.

This Monday's court decision in France is concurrent with the Macrons initiating a libel case in the United States of America against right-wing influencer Candace Owens, who has repeatedly shared similar conspiracy theories about the Brigitte Macron's biological sex.

Their complaint contends that Owens brushed aside all credible evidence contradicting her allegations opting to give a platform to established defamers.

Owens has often echoed these claims on her podcast and social networks, and in March 2024 declared that she would stake her entire professional reputation on her belief that Mrs. Macron was born a man.

Brigitte Macron first met her future husband when she taught at his lycée.

The two married in 2007, when the then-29-year-old Emmanuel Macron was 29 and she was 54.