Two women have been convicted of defamation for spreading false rumors about Brigitte Macron, the wife of the French President.

The Paris court fined them 500 euros each, with a suspended sentence, and ordered them to pay 8,000 euros in damages to Brigitte Macron and 5,000 euros to her brother, Jean-Michel Trogneux.

The rumors, which falsely claimed that Brigitte Macron was a transgender woman, gained significant traction online, even reaching audiences in the United States.

The court deemed the claims as baseless personal interpretations.

Brigitte Macron's lawyer emphasized the severe impact of these falsehoods, which have been widely circulated since 2017. Legal actions are ongoing both in France and internationally to address the spread of such misinformation.