"False" & "invented"

Macron defends himself against rumors about his wife

Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron(Bild: APA/AFP/POOL/Christophe PETIT TESSON)

French President Emmanuel Macron (46) is defending himself for the first time against claims that his wife (70) was born a man.

For years, the French presidential couple have been fighting false claims that the former teacher is a transgender woman who was born a man. Now the president has spoken out publicly for the first time.

"False" and "invented"
"The worst thing is the false information and invented scenarios," Macron reportedly said unusually emotionally on Friday at an International Women's Day event in Paris, after guaranteeing the right to abortion in the French constitution.

He also stated, "People end up believing the stories and disturb you, even in your privacy."

"Concerned about society"
Brigitte Macron's daughter, the lawyer Tiphaine Auzaine, is also taking action against the rumors and said in an interview in "Paris Match": "I am concerned about the level of society when I hear what is circulating on social networks about my mother being a man."

She particularly criticized the fact that anyone can "say anything about anyone" and that time passes before it is deleted.

The rumors originated from two women who were fined by a French court last summer for defamation.