Moroccan Opposition Leader Criticizes French PM’s Sexuality, Sparking Controversy

On the sidelines of the ordinary session of the regional council of Tanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceima, Abdelilah Benkirane strongly criticized the promotion of Gabriel Attal. "I never imagined that things in France would go so fast, to the point that they now have a Prime Minister who says he is proud to be gay and married to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Stéphane Séjourné, ed.). I said to myself, what a misadventure is this?" he questions.

The former head of government cannot believe that a homosexual has been promoted in France. "France, the country of De Gaulle, Mitterrand and Jacques Chirac. What is this? What has happened in the world? And he (Attal, ed.) boasts before Parliament," he adds, asking questions. "How would every Frenchman feel every time his head of government goes to another country? He would wonder what he will do there or what they will do to him or I don’t know what. [...] When you see this today in France, aren’t you afraid for your country?" His remarks provoked laughter in the audience.

Does Stéphane Séjourné remain the Prime Minister’s companion? In January, French journalist Louis Hausalter of Le Figaro revealed that they had broken their civil union. "While Stéphane Séjourné is to be appointed to the Quai d’Orsay while retaining the leadership of the Renaissance party, his entourage is keen to specify that: ’Mr. Séjourné and Mr. Attal have not been together for two years. Their civil union was dissolved at that time,’" he had reported on January 11, 2024 on X (formerly Twitter). To date, the two officials have not spoken about their breakup.