Moroccan feminist and LGBTI rights defender, Ibtissame (“Betty”) Lachgar, is serving a 30-month prison sentence after being convicted of “causing harm to Islam” for posting on social media a photograph of herself wearing a T-shirt bearing the slogan “Allah is lesbian.” Moroccan police arrested Ibtissame Lachgar on 10 August 2025 and a prosecutor ordered her pre-trial detention pending investigation on accusations of “intentional insult to Islam or sacred symbols.” On 3 September 2025, the Rabat First-Instance Court found her guilty under Article 267-5 of the Moroccan Penal Code, which criminalizes “intentional insult to Islam or sacred symbols” via publications, including online. She was sentenced to two and a half years’ imprisonment and a fine of 50,000 dirhams (approximately 5500 USD). On 8 October 2025, the Rabat Court of Appeal upheld the conviction and sentence.
