Ten individuals convicted of digital abuse targeting Brigitte Macron

A Paris court has found guilty ten people for perpetrating the online harassment of Brigitte Macron, the spouse of French President, Emmanuel Macron.

The accused individuals faced charges of disseminating fabrications regarding her gender and sexuality, in addition to publishing hurtful comments about the pair's 24-year age gap.

The court handed down suspended jail terms of as much as eight months to the convicted individuals. The complete verdict has not yet been published.

A persistent conspiracy theory alleging that Brigitte Macron is a transgender woman has spread widely since her husband's initial election in 2017.

This latest legal outcome in France comes as the Macrons initiating a legal action for defamation in the US against right-wing influencer Candace Owens, who has also voiced comparable unfounded claims about the French president's wife's biological sex.

Their complaint alleges that Owens disregarded substantial counter-evidence that refuted her assertions opting to platforming known conspiracy theorists.

Owens has frequently reiterated these assertions on her digital program 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 now-husband when she was a teacher at his secondary school.

The pair entered into matrimony in 2007, when the then-29-year-old Emmanuel Macron was 29 and she was in her mid-50s.