10 men arrested after video showing an alleged gay marriage in Mauritania surfaced online
Reports described the event as the first 'gay marriage' in the anti-gay country
By Steve Brown
Words: Steve Brown
At least 10 men have been detained and charged after a video showing an alleged gay marriage in Mauritania surfaced.
According to AFP, prosecutors in the capital Nouakchott detained the men on Monday (January 27) after footage which appeared to show a same-sex marriage taking place surfaced on social media.
Reports described the event as the first ‘gay marriage’ in the country, where homosexual acts are banned in the Islamic republic.
Police commissioner Mohamed Ould Nejih said investigators found that the party was ‘the birthday celebration of a homosexual’ where other gay men were invited.
The men were arrested a week after the ceremony and were detained in order to ‘help investigations’.
Under Article 308 of Mauritania’s criminal code – which is based on the Sharia Islamic law – homosexual acts are banned between Muslim adults and is described as ‘acts against nature’.