Saudi Arabia is known as one of the world’s most anti-LGBT+ societies, yet an unlikely hashtag has been trending on Twitter in the country.
The sentence, احب_المثليين_ولست_منهم which means “I love gays and I’m not one of them” has been gaining traction and reached the number one trending spot this week.
The Kingdom condemns homosexuality, which can be punished by fines, imprisonment, torture and even death.
In 2016, it was reported that prosecutors in the country were pushing to enforce the death penalty for those who came out online, blaming social media for the “surge in abnormal behaviour”.
The hashtag has been used with words of support for the gay community in Saudi Arabia. One user wrote, “Hate against LGBTQ is not logical. How can you hate someone because they practising their human rights?”
Another said, “Take a look in this tag and get a glimpse of how tolerant & accepting & loving Saudis are.”