Homosexual couple in Morocco tortured, then imprisoned for defending themselves

 Showing a homosexual couple being tortured has provoked widespread condemnation throughout Morocco, where attacks against homosexuals are on the rise. But perhaps the most shocking part is the way in which the authorities reacted.

Taken by one of the four attackers, the amateur two men shows naked and bleeding, being beaten and humiliated in their home in Beni Mellal, a town in the centre of Morocco. The footage was filmed in early March, but the video only appeared online at the end of the month.


The attackers beat and insult the two men, who are sitting on the bed. The two men try to put their clothes back on, but their torturers stop them, and the macabre scene continues. The video ends after the two victims are thrown naked onto a public road.
 

 

The four assailants were later arrested – but so too were the victims. The first victim has already been handed a fine totalling 500 Moroccan dirhams [Editor's note: around 45 euros] and sentenced to four months behind bars for 'homosexuality', in accordance with article 489 of the Moroccan penal code. The court also threw out his self-defence plea, finding him guilty of 'assault and battery'. The second victim will be judged on April 4.