Editing LGBTQ people and Islam

{{Short description|none}}
{{For|intersex people in Islam|Intersex people and religion#Islam}}
{{Redirect|Homosexuality in Islam|the book|Homosexuality in Islam (book)}}
{{Islam|culture}}
{{Islam and other religions}}

Within the [[Muslim world]], sentiment towards [[LGBTQ people]] varies and has varied between societies and individual [[Muslims]].<ref name="lawnet.fordham.edu">{{cite journal |last1=Rehman |first1=Javaid |last2=Polymenopoulou |first2=Eleni |date=2013 |title=Is Green a Part of the Rainbow? ''Sharia'', Homosexuality, and LGBT Rights in the Muslim World |url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2322&context=ilj |url-status=live |format=PDF |journal=[[Fordham International Law Journal]] |publisher=[[Fordham University School of Law]] |volume=37 |issue=1 |pages=1–53 |issn=0747-9395 |oclc=52769025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180721220600/https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&article=2322&context=ilj |archive-date=21 July 2018 |access-date=30 October 2021}}</ref><ref name="Schmidtke 1999">{{cite journal |last=Schmidtke |first=Sabine |author-link=Sabine Schmidtke |date=June 1999 |title=Homoeroticism and Homosexuality in Islam: A Review Article |journal=[[Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies]] |location=[[Cambridge]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] on behalf of the [[School of Oriental and African Studies]] ([[University of London]]) |volume=62 |issue=2 |pages=260–266 |doi=10.1017/S0041977X00016700 |eissn=1474-0699 |issn=0041-977X |jstor=3107489 |s2cid=170880292}}</ref><ref name="Murray 1997">{{cite book |author-last=Murray |author-first=Stephen O. |author-link=Stephen O. Murray |year=1997 |chapter=The Will Not to Know: Islamic Accommodations of Male Homosexuality |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6Zw-AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA14 |editor1-last=Murray |editor1-first=Stephen O. |editor2-last=Roscoe |editor2-first=Will |title=[[Islamic Homosexualities|Islamic Homosexualities: Culture, History, and Literature]] |location=[[New York City|New York]] and [[London]] |publisher=[[NYU Press]] |pages=14–54 |doi=10.18574/nyu/9780814761083.003.0004 |isbn=9780814774687 |jstor=j.ctt9qfmm4 |oclc=35526232 |s2cid=141668547 |access-date=2021-11-06 |archive-date=2023-04-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034024/https://books.google.com/books?id=6Zw-AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA14 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author-last=Polymenopoulou |author-first=Eleni |date=18 May 2020 |title=Forum: LGBTQ+ Issues in International Relations, Human Rights & Development – Same-Sex Narratives and LGBTI Activism in the Muslim World |url=https://gjia.georgetown.edu/2020/05/18/same-sex-narratives-and-lgbti-activism-in-muslim-world/ |url-status=live |journal=[[Georgetown Journal of International Affairs]] |location=[[Washington, D.C.]] |publisher=[[Walsh School of Foreign Service]] at the [[Georgetown University]] |issn=1526-0054 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201020121756/https://gjia.georgetown.edu/2020/05/18/same-sex-narratives-and-lgbti-activism-in-muslim-world/ |archive-date=20 October 2020 |access-date=7 December 2021}}</ref> While colloquial and in many cases ''[[de facto]]'' official acceptance of at least some homosexual behavior was commonplace in pre-modern periods, later developments, starting from the 19th century, have created a generally hostile environment for LGBTQ people.

Meanwhile, contemporary Islamic jurisprudence generally accepts the possibility for transgender people (''mukhannith''/''mutarajjilah'') to change their gender status, but only after surgery, linking one's gender to biological markers.<ref name="Yusuf, Nasruddin 2022">{{cite journal |last1=Yusuf |first1=N. |last2=Willya |first2=E. |last3=Rajafi |first3=A. |last4=Djabli |first4=I. |title=Islamic Legal Status on Hajj for Transgender People according to Muslim Scholars in North Sulawesi |journal=Mazahib Jurnal Pemikiran Hukum Islam |volume=21 |issue=1 |pages=29–62 |date=2022 |url=http://repository.iain-manado.ac.id/589/1/Islamic%20Legal%20Status%20on%20Hajj.pdf}}</ref> Trans people are nonetheless confronted with stigma, discrimination, intimidation, and harassment in many Muslim-majority societies.<ref name="Zaharin AAM 2020">{{cite journal |vauthors=Zaharin AA, Pallotta-Chiarolli M |title=Countering Islamic conservatism on being transgender: Clarifying Tantawi's and Khomeini's fatwas from the progressive Muslim standpoint |journal=Int J Transgend Health |volume=21 |issue=3 |pages=235–241 |date=2020 |pmid=34993508 |pmc=8726683 |doi=10.1080/26895269.2020.1778238 }}</ref> Transgender identities are often considered under the gender binary,<ref name="Zaharin AAM 2020"/> although some pre-modern scholars had recognized ''[[Mukhannath|effeminate men]]'' as a form of [[third gender]], as long as their behaviour was naturally in contrast to their assigned gender at birth.<ref name="Yusuf, Nasruddin 2022"/>

There are differences in how the [[Quran|Qur'an]] and later ''[[hadith]]'' traditions (orally transmitted collections of Muhammad's teachings) treat homosexuality, the latter is far more explicitly negative. Due to these differences, it has been argued that [[Muhammad]], the main [[Prophets and messengers in Islam|Islamic prophet]], never forbade homosexual relationships outright, although he disapproved of them in line with his contemporaries.<ref name="Islamic Homosexualities">{{cite book |last1=Murray |first1=Stephen O. |title=[[Islamic Homosexualities|Islamic Homosexualities: Culture, History, and Literature]] |last2=Roscoe |first2=Will |last3=Allyn |first3=Eric |last4=Crompton |first4=Louis |last5=Dickemann |first5=Mildred |last6=Khan |first6=Badruddin |last7=Mujtaba |first7=Hasan |last8=Naqvi |first8=Nauman |last9=Wafer |first9=Jim |display-authors=1|publisher=[[NYU Press]] |year=1997 |isbn=9780814774687 |editor1-last=Murray |editor1-first=Stephen O. |editor1-link=Stephen O. Murray |location=[[New York City|New York]] and [[London]] |pages=307–310 |chapter=Conclusion |doi=10.18574/nyu/9780814761083.003.0004 |jstor=j.ctt9qfmm4 |oclc=35526232 |access-date=2021-04-20 |editor2-last=Roscoe |editor2-first=Will |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6Zw-AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA307 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034025/https://books.google.com/books?id=6Zw-AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA307 |archive-date=2023-04-19 |url-status=live |s2cid=141668547 |last10=Westphal-Hellbusch |first10=Sigrid}}</ref> There is, however, comparatively little evidence of homosexual practices being prevalent in Muslim societies for the first century and a half of [[History of Islam|Islamic history]];<ref name="iranica-law" /> male homosexual relationships were known of and discriminated against in [[Arabian Peninsula|Arabia]] but were generally not met with legal sanctions.<ref name="autogenerated1983" /><ref name="Islamic Homosexualities" /> In later pre-modern periods, historical evidence of homosexual relationships is more common, and shows ''de facto'' tolerance of these relationships.<ref name="Schmidtke 1999" /><ref name="Islamic Homosexualities" /><ref name="autogenerated1983" /><ref name="iranica-law" /><ref name="ia601301.us.archive.org" /> Historical records suggest that laws against homosexuality were invoked infrequently—mainly in [[Rape in Islamic law|cases of rape]] or other "exceptionally blatant infringement on public morals" as defined by Islamic law.<ref name="iranica-law" /> This allowed themes of [[homoeroticism]] and [[pederasty]] to be cultivated in [[Islamic poetry]] and other [[Islamic literature|Islamic literary genres]], written in major languages of the Muslim world, from the 8th century CE into the modern era.<ref name="Islamic Homosexualities" /><ref name="iranica-law" /><ref>{{cite book|author=Khaled El-Rouayheb |title=Before Homosexuality in the Arab-Islamic World 1500–1800 |pages=12 ff}}</ref><ref name="ia601301.us.archive.org" /> The conceptions of homosexuality found in these texts resembled the traditions of [[Homosexuality in ancient Greece|ancient Greece]] and [[Homosexuality in ancient Rome|ancient Rome]] as opposed to the modern understanding of [[sexual orientation]].<ref name="Islamic Homosexualities" /><ref name="iranica-law" /><ref name="ali-105">{{Cite book |last=Ali |first=Kecia |title=Sexual Ethics And Islam |publisher=Oneworld Publications (Kindle edition) |year=2016 |page=105 |author-link=Kecia Ali}}</ref>

In the modern era, Muslim public attitudes towards homosexuality underwent a marked change beginning in the 19th century, largely due to the [[International propagation of Salafism and Wahhabism|global spread of Islamic fundamentalist movements]], namely [[Salafi movement|Salafism]] and [[Wahhabism]].<ref name="Ibrahim 2016">{{cite journal |date=October 2016 |title=Homophobic Muslims: Emerging Trends in Multireligious Singapore |journal=Comparative Studies in Society and History |location=[[Cambridge]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |volume=58 |issue=4 |pages=955–981 |doi=10.1017/S0010417516000499 |issn=1475-2999 |jstor=26293235 |s2cid=152039212 |author-last=Ibrahim |author-first=Nur Amali}}</ref> The Muslim world was also influenced by the sexual notions and restrictive norms that were prevalent in the [[Christendom|Christian world]] at the time, particularly with regard to anti-homosexual legislation throughout European societies, most of which adhered to [[Canon law|Christian law]]. A number of Muslim-majority countries that were once colonies of European empires retain the criminal penalties that were originally implemented by European colonial authorities against those who were convicted of engaging in non-heterosexual acts.<ref name="Ibrahim 2016" />  Therefore, modern Muslim homophobia is generally not thought to be a direct continuation of pre-modern mores but a phenomenon that has been shaped by a variety of local and imported frameworks.<ref name="Murray 1997" /><ref name="Ibrahim 2016" /> Most Muslim-majority countries have opposed moves to advance LGBTQ rights and recognition at the [[United Nations]] (UN), including within the [[United Nations General Assembly|UN General Assembly]] and the [[United Nations Human Rights Council|UN Human Rights Council]].<ref name="lawnet.fordham.edu" />

As [[Western culture]] eventually moved towards [[secularism]] and thus enabled a platform for the flourishing of many [[LGBTQ movements]], many Muslim fundamentalists came to associate the Western world with "ravaging moral decay" and rampant homosexuality.<ref>{{cite news |title=How homosexuality became a crime in the Middle East |newspaper=The Economist |url=https://www.economist.com/open-future/2018/06/06/how-homosexuality-became-a-crime-in-the-middle-east |access-date=2022-12-05 |issn=0013-0613 |archive-date=2019-07-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190703034324/https://www.economist.com/open-future/2018/06/06/how-homosexuality-became-a-crime-in-the-middle-east |url-status=live }}</ref> In contemporary society, prejudice, [[Discrimination against LGBT people|anti-LGBTQ discrimination]] and/or [[violence against LGBT people|anti-LGBTQ violence]]—including violence which is practiced within legal systems—persist in much of the [[Muslim world]],<ref name="lawnet.fordham.edu" /> exacerbated by socially conservative attitudes and the recent{{when|date=November 2023}} rise of [[Islamism|Islamist ideologies]] in some countries;<ref name="Ibrahim 2016" /><ref>{{cite journal |last=Siraj |first=Asifa |date=September 2012 |title="I Don't Want to Taint the Name of Islam": The Influence of Religion on the Lives of Muslim Lesbians |journal=Journal of Lesbian Studies |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]] |volume=16 |issue=4: ''Lesbians, Sexuality, and Islam'' |pages=449–467 |pmid=22978285 |doi=10.1080/10894160.2012.681268 |s2cid=22066812}}</ref><ref name="TransgenderHealth 2020">{{cite journal |last1=Zaharin |first1=Aisya Aymanee M. |last2=Pallotta-Chiarolli |first2=Maria |date=June 2020 |title=Countering Islamic conservatism on being transgender: Clarifying Tantawi's and Khomeini's fatwas from the progressive Muslim standpoint |journal=[[International Journal of Transgender Health]] |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]] |volume=21 |issue=3 |pages=235–241 |doi=10.1080/26895269.2020.1778238 |pmid=34993508 |pmc=8726683 |doi-access=free |issn=1553-2739 |lccn=2004213389 |oclc=56795128 |s2cid=225679841}}</ref> there are laws in place against homosexual activities in a larger number of Muslim-majority countries, with a number of them prescribing the death penalty for convicted offenders.<ref name="auto">{{cite web |editor-last=Ghoshal |editor-first=Neela |date=26 January 2022 |title="Even If You Go to the Skies, We'll Find You": LGBT People in Afghanistan After the Taliban Takeover |url=https://www.hrw.org/report/2022/01/26/even-if-you-go-skies-well-find-you/lgbt-people-afghanistan-after-taliban-takeover |url-status=live |location=[[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Human Rights Watch]] |language=en |website=www.hrw.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207145435/https://www.hrw.org/report/2022/01/26/even-if-you-go-skies-well-find-you/lgbt-people-afghanistan-after-taliban-takeover |archive-date=7 February 2023 |access-date=21 February 2023}}</ref>

== History ==
Muslim attitudes to LGBTQ practices have varied throughout Islamic history; legal scholars condemned and often formulated punishments for homosexual acts, yet lenient (or often non-existent) enforcement allowed for toleration, and sometimes "celebration" of such acts.<ref name="ia601301.us.archive.org" /> [[Homoeroticism]] was idealized in the form of [[Homoerotic poetry|poetry]] or artistic declarations of love, often from an older man to a younger man or adolescent boy.<ref name="iranica-law" /> Accordingly, the Arabic language had an appreciable vocabulary of homoerotic terms, with multiple words to describe types of [[male prostitutes]], including those pre-dating Islam.<ref>{{cite book |author=John Boswell |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v-MR5_AdG68C&pg=PA195 |title=Christianity, Social Tolerance, and Homosexuality: Gay People in Western Europe from the Beginning of the Christian Era to the Fourteenth Century |date=2009 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=9780226067148 |pages=195–}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Al-Rouayheb |first=Khaled |date=2005 |title=Before Homosexuality in the Arab-Islamic World |url=https://transreads.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/2022-02-10_62054cd61ba3b_BeforeHomosexualityintheArab-IslamicWorld1500-1800byKhaledEl-Rouayhebz-lib.org_.pdf}}</ref> Schmitt (1992) identifies some twenty words in Arabic, [[Persian language|Persian]], and [[Turkish language|Turkish]] to identify those who are penetrated.<ref name="Murray 1997" />{{rp|30–32}} Other related Arabic words includes ''[[mukhannathun]]'' (effeminate men), ''ma'bûn'', ''halaqī'', and ''baghghā''.<ref name="TEOEM" />

===Pre-modern era===
There is little evidence for homosexual practice in Islamic societies for the first century and a half of the Islamic era.<ref name="iranica-law" /> Homoerotic poetry appears suddenly at the end of the 8th century CE, particularly in Baghdad in the work of [[Abu Nuwas]] (756–814), who became a master of all the contemporary genres of Arabic poetry.<ref name="iranica-law" /><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Abu Nuwas &#124; Persian poet |encyclopedia=Britannica.com |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abu-Nuwas |access-date=5 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308023255/http://www.britannica.com/biography/Abu-Nuwas |archive-date=8 March 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> The famous author [[Jahiz]] tried to explain the abrupt change in attitudes toward homosexuality after the [[Abbasid Revolution]] by the arrival of the Abbasid army from [[Khurasan]], who are said to have consoled themselves with male [[Page (servant)|pages]] when they were forbidden to take their wives with them.<ref name="iranica-law" /> 

The increased prosperity following the early conquests was accompanied by a "corruption of morals" in the two holy cities of [[Mecca]] and [[Medina]], and it can be inferred that homosexual practice became more widespread during this time as a result of acculturation to foreign customs, such as the music and dance practiced by ''[[mukhannathun]]'', who were mostly foreign in origin.<ref name="autogenerated1983" /> The Abbasid caliph [[Al-Amin]] ([[Reign|r.]] 809–813) was said to have required slave women to be dressed in masculine clothing so he could be persuaded to have sex with them, and a broader fashion for ''ghulamiyyat'' (boy-like girls) is reflected in literature of the period.<ref name="autogenerated1983" /> The same was said of [[al-Andalus|Andalusian]] ruler [[al-Hakam II]] (r. 961–976). Chief Judge of the Abbasid Caliphate [[Yahya ibn Aktham]] permitted homosexual acts, despite being harsh on other sexual acts such as [[fornication]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Habib |first=Samar |url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781135910099 |title=Female Homosexuality in the Middle East |date=2012-08-06 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-135-91009-9 |edition= |pages=8, 53, 58, 83 |language=en |doi=10.4324/9780203941454}}</ref> This had proved controversial with a writer, Abi Salma, wrote "we had hoped to see justice apparent, but our implorations ended in despair, for, can the world and its people come to any good when the Grand Judge of Muslims sodomizes (''yaluṯu'')?"<ref>{{Cite book |last=Habib |first=Samar |url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781135910099 |title=Female Homosexuality in the Middle East |date=2012-08-06 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-135-91009-9 |edition= |pages=52 |language=en |doi=10.4324/9780203941454}}</ref>

The conceptions of homosexuality found in classical Islamic texts resemble the [[Homosexuality in ancient Greece|traditions of classical Greece]] and [[Homosexuality in ancient Rome|those of ancient Rome]], rather than the modern understanding of sexual orientation.<ref name="iranica-law" /><ref name="ali-105" /> It was expected that many mature men would be sexually attracted to both women and adolescent boys (with different views about the appropriate age range for the latter), and such men were expected to wish to play only an active role in homosexual intercourse once they reached adulthood.<ref name="iranica-law" /><ref name="ali-105" /> However, any confident assessment of the actual incidence of homosexual behavior remains elusive.<ref name="iranica-law" /> Preference for homosexual over heterosexual relations was regarded as a matter of personal taste rather than a marker of homosexual identity in a modern sense.<ref name="iranica-law" /><ref name="ali-105" /> While playing an active role in homosexual relations carried no social stigma beyond that of licentious behavior, seeking to play a passive role was considered both unnatural and shameful for a mature man.<ref name="iranica-law" /><ref name="ali-105" /> Following Greek precedents, the Islamic medical tradition only regarded this latter case as pathological, and showed no concern for other forms of homosexual behavior.<ref name="iranica-law" /> This view also made some inroads to the worldviews of [[Aalim|religious scholars]], but to a lesser extent; in an eleventh-century discussion among the scholars of Baghdad, some scholars who showed traits of [[bisexuality]] argued that it is natural for a man to desire anal intercourse with a fellow man, but this would be only allowed in the afterlife.<ref>{{cite book |last=Lange |first=Christian |url= |title=Paradise and Hell in Islamic Traditions |date=2016 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-50637-3 |location=Cambridge United Kingdom |page= |author-link=}}</ref>{{rp|p=152}}

The medieval Islamic concept of homoerotic relationships was distinct from modern concept of homosexuality, and related to the [[pederasty]] of Ancient Greece.<ref name="iranica-law" /><ref name="iranica-literature">{{cite encyclopedia |title=HOMOSEXUALITY iii. IN PERSIAN LITERATURE |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Iranica]] |publisher=[[Columbia University]] |location=[[New York City|New York]] |url=https://iranicaonline.org/articles/homosexuality-iii |access-date=25 June 2021 |last=Rowson |first=Everett K. |date=23 March 2012 |author-link=Everett K. Rowson |orig-year=15 December 2004 |volume=XII/4-5 |pages=445–448, 449–454 |doi=10.1163/2330-4804_EIRO_COM_11037 |issn=2330-4804 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130517035336/https://iranicaonline.org/articles/homosexuality-iii |archive-date=17 May 2013 |doi-access=free |url-status=live}}</ref> During the early period, growth of a beard was considered to be the conventional age when an adolescent lost his homoerotic appeal, as evidenced by poetic protestations that the author still found his lover beautiful despite the growing beard.<ref name="iranica-literature" /> During later periods, the age of the stereotypical beloved became more ambiguous, and this prototype was often represented in [[Persian poetry]] by [[Turkic peoples|Turkic]] [[slave-soldier]]s.<ref name="iranica-law" /><ref name="iranica-literature" /> This trend is illustrated by the story of [[Mahmud of Ghazni]] (971–1030), the ruler of the [[Ghaznavids|Ghaznavid Empire]], and his cupbearer [[Malik Ayaz]].<ref name="iranica-law" /> Their relationship started when Malik was a slave boy: "At the time of the coins' minting, Mahmud of Ghazni was in a passionate romantic relationship with his male slave Malik Ayaz, and had exalted him to various positions of power across the Ghazanid Empire. While the story of their love affair had been censored until recently—the result of Western colonialism and changing attitudes towards homosexuality in the Middle East—Jasmine explains how Ghazni's subjects saw their relationship as a higher form of love."<ref name="ABRAHA AL-ASHRAM">{{cite web |last1=Matthewson-Grand |first1=Allison |date=21 February 2020 |title=QUEER HISTORY: A TOUR OF GENDER AND IDENTITY THROUGH TIME AND CULTURE |url=https://www.cam.ac.uk/alumni/queerhistory |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210526124146/https://www.cam.ac.uk/alumni/queerhistory |archive-date=26 May 2021 |access-date=June 1, 2021 |publisher=University of Cambridge}}</ref>

[[File:Mahmud and Ayaz and Shah Abbas I.jpg|thumb|250px|right|[[Mahmud of Ghazni]] (in red robe), shaking hands with a sheikh, with his companion [[Malik Ayaz]] standing behind him (1515)]]Other famous examples of homosexuality include the [[Aghlabid]] [[Emir]] [[Ibrahim II of Ifriqiya]] (ruled 875–902), who was said to have been surrounded by some sixty [[catamite]]s, yet whom he was said to have treated in a most horrific manner. [[Caliph]] [[al-Mutasim]] in the 9th century and some of his successors were accused of homosexuality. The Christian martyr [[Pelagius of Córdoba]] was executed by [[al-Andalus|Andalusian]] ruler [[Abd al-Rahman III]] because the boy refused his advances.<ref name="autogenerated1983" />

The 14th-century Iranian poet [[Obeid Zakani]], in his scores of satirical stories and poems, ridiculed the contradiction between the strict legalistic prohibitions of homosexuality on the one hand and its common practice on the other. Following is an example from his Ressaleh Delgosha: "Two old men, who used to exchange sex since their very childhood, were making love on the top of a mosque's minaret in the holy city of Qom. When both finished their turns, one told the other: "shameless practices have ruined our city." The other man nodded and said, "You and I are the city's blessed seniors, what then do you expect from others?"<ref>Ressaleh Delgosha, Story No. 32, Koliate Obeid Zakani, edited by Parviz Atabaki, Zavar Publication, 1384, p. 316.</ref>

European sources state that [[Mehmed the Conqueror]], an [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] [[sultan]] from the 15th century, "was known to have ambivalent sexual tastes, sent a eunuch to the house of Notaras, demanding that he supply his good-looking fourteen-year-old son for the Sultan's pleasure. When he refused, the Sultan instantly ordered the decapitation of Notaras, together with that of his son and his son-in-law; and their three heads … were placed on the banqueting table before him".<ref>Kinross, ''The Ottoman Centuries'', pp. 115–16.</ref> Another youth Mehmed found attractive, and who was presumably more accommodating, was [[Radu III the Fair]], the brother of [[Vlad the Impaler]]: "Radu, a hostage in Istanbul whose good looks had caught the Sultan's fancy, and who was thus singled out to serve as one of his most favored pages." After the defeat of Vlad, Mehmed placed Radu on the throne of [[Wallachia]] as a vassal ruler. However, some Turkish sources deny these stories.<ref>''History of the Ottoman Empire'', Mohamed Farid Bey</ref>

According to the ''Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World'':
<blockquote>Whatever the legal strictures on sexual activity, the positive expression of male homoerotic sentiment in literature was accepted, and assiduously cultivated, from the late eighth century until modern times. First in [[Arabic]], but later also in Persian, Turkish and [[Urdu]], love poetry by men about boys more than competed with that about women, it overwhelmed it. Anecdotal literature reinforces this impression of general societal acceptance of the public celebration of male-male love (which hostile Western caricatures of Islamic societies in medieval and early modern times simply exaggerate).<ref name="autogenerated1">{{cite encyclopedia |title=Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World |publisher=MacMillan Reference USA |date=2004 |page=316}}</ref></blockquote>

[[File:Shah Abbas and Wine Boy.jpg|thumb|250px|right|[[Abbas I of Persia|Shah Abbas]] of [[Safavid Iran|Iran]] with a [[Page (servant)|page]] (1627), [[Persian miniature]] by Muhammad Qasim in the [[Louvre|Louvre Museum]];<ref name="Louvre.fr">{{cite web |last=Francis |first=Richard |date=2007 |title=Shah Abbas I and his Page |url=https://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/shah-abbas-i-and-his-page |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121201015029/https://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/shah-abbas-i-and-his-page |archive-date=1 December 2012 |access-date=1 December 2020 |website=Louvre.fr |publisher=[[Louvre|Louvre Museum]] |language=en |quote=Seated under a tree beside a stream, [[Abbas I of Persia|Shah Abbas I]] is offered wine by a young [[cup-bearer]] he seems to be rather fond of, as his arm is around his shoulders. [...] European travellers remarked on the shah's taste for wine and festivities, and also noted his penchant for charming [[Page (servant)|pages]] and cup-bearers. If he were not wearing a turban, the curly hair and ambiguous beauty of the young man here might suggest a woman. [...] The scene is also susceptible of symbolic interpretation: there are a vast number of short [[Persian poetry|Persian poems]], in a tradition going back to the [[Medieval Persia|Middle Ages]], which are addressed to the "saqi," or cup-bearer, the poet calling on the latter to bring about the intoxication of [[Islamic mysticism|mystical experience]] by pouring wine into the cup. |location=[[Paris]]}}</ref> European travellers who had visited Iran during the reign of Shah Abbas have spoken of his strong desire for charming young [[Page (servant)|pages]] and [[cup-bearer]]s.<ref name="Louvre.fr" />]]
European travellers remarked on the taste that [[Abbas I of Persia|Shah Abbas]] of [[Safavid Iran|Iran]] (1588–1629) had for wine and festivities, but also for attractive [[Page (servant)|pages]] and [[cup-bearer]]s.<ref name="Louvre.fr" /> A painting by Riza Abbasi with homo-erotic qualities shows the ruler enjoying such delights.<ref>{{cite book |last=Welch |first=Anthony |title=Persian Painting from the Mongols to the Qajars |date=2000 |editor-first=Robert |editor-last=Hillenbrand |location=London |publisher=[[Bloomsbury Publishing]] |pages=303, 309 |chapter=Worldly and Otherworldly Love in Safavi Painting}}</ref>

According to Daniel Eisenberg, "Homosexuality was a key symbolic issue throughout the [[Middle Ages]] in [Islamic] [[Iberia]]. As was customary everywhere until the nineteenth century, homosexuality was not viewed as a congenital disposition or 'identity'; the focus was on nonprocreative sexual practices, of which sodomy was the most controversial." For example, in [[al-Andalus]] "homosexual pleasures were much indulged by the intellectual and political elite. Evidence includes the behavior of rulers ... who kept male harems."<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |year=2003 |title=Medieval Iberia: An Encyclopedia |publisher=[[Routledge]] |last=Eisenberg |first=Daniel |editor-last=Gerli |editor-first=Michael |pages=398–399 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181203055513/http://users.ipfw.edu/jehle/deisenbe/Enc_of_Medieval_Iberia/homosexuality.pdf |archive-date=3 December 2018 |contribution-url=http://users.ipfw.edu/jehle/deisenbe/Enc_of_Medieval_Iberia/homosexuality.pdf |contribution=Homosexuality}}</ref>{{rp|398}} Although early Islamic writings such as the Quran expressed a mildly negative attitude towards homosexuality, laypersons usually apprehended the idea with indifference, if not admiration. Few literary works displayed hostility towards non-heterosexuality, apart from partisan statements and debates about types of love (which also occurred in heterosexual contexts).<ref>{{cite book |last=Boswell |first=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v-MR5_AdG68C&pg=PA195 |title=Christianity, Social Tolerance, and Homosexuality: Gay People in Western Europe from the Beginning of the Christian Era to the Fourteenth Century |date=15 February 2009 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=9780226067148 |access-date=5 April 2017 |via=Google Books}}</ref> Khaled el-Rouayheb (2014) maintains that "much if not most of the extant love poetry of the period [16th to 18th century] is pederastic in tone, portraying an adult male poet's passionate love for a teenage boy".<ref>{{cite journal |last=Dalacoura |first=Katerina |date=2014 |title=Homosexuality as cultural battleground in the Middle East: culture and postcolonial international theory |url=http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/56822/1/Homosexuality_Middle%20East.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Third World Quarterly |volume=35 |issue=7 |page=4 |doi=10.1080/01436597.2014.926119 |s2cid=31979917 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200610091932/http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/56822/1/Homosexuality_Middle |archive-date=2020-06-10 |access-date=2017-03-07}}</ref> In mystic writings of the medieval era, such as [[Sufi texts]], it is "unclear whether the beloved being addressed is a teenage boy or God." European chroniclers censured "the indulgent attitudes to gay sex in the Caliphs' courts."<ref name="economist.com">{{Cite news |date=4 February 2012 |title=Straight but narrow |newspaper=The Economist |url=https://www.economist.com/international/2012/02/04/straight-but-narrow |url-status=live |access-date=13 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210929123113/https://www.economist.com/international/2012/02/04/straight-but-narrow |archive-date=29 September 2021}}</ref>

El-Rouayheb suggests that even though religious scholars considered sodomy as an abhorrent sin, most of them did not genuinely believe that it was illicit to merely fall in love with a boy or express this love via poetry.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Katerina Dalacoura (2014) p.4 |url=http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/56822/1/Homosexuality_Middle%20East.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200610091932/http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/56822/1/Homosexuality_Middle |archive-date=2020-06-10 |access-date=2017-03-07}}</ref> In secular society however, a male's desire to penetrate a desirable youth was seen as understandable, even if unlawful.<ref>{{cite book |author=Kecia Ali |title=Sexual Ethics and Islam: Feminist Reflections on Qur'an, Hadith and Jurisprudence |date=2016 |publisher=Oneworld Publications |page=105}}</ref> On the other hand, men adopting the passive role were more subjected to stigma. The medical term ''ubnah'' qualified the pathological desire of a male to exclusively be on the receiving end of anal intercourse. Physicians that theorized on ''ubnah'' includes [[Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi|Rhazes]], who thought that it was correlated with small genitals and that a treatment was possible provided that the subject was deemed to be not too effeminate and the behavior not "prolonged".<ref>{{cite book |last=Massad |first=Joseph |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780226509587 |title=Desiring Arabs |date=2007 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=9780226509600 |page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780226509587/page/251 251] |url-access=registration}}.</ref> [[Dawud al-Antaki]] advanced that it could have been caused by an acidic substance embedded in the veins of the anus, causing itchiness and thus the need to seek relief.<ref>{{cite book |author=Khaled El-Rouayheb |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=undbSDztxVMC&pg=PA19 |title=Before Homosexuality in the Arab-Islamic World, 1500–1800 |date=2009 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=9780226729909 |pages=19–}}</ref>

===Modern era===
[[File:Trenecito.jpg|thumb|Ottoman Turkish manuscript from 1773]]

The 18th and 19th centuries saw the rise of [[Islamic fundamentalism]] such as [[Wahhabism]], which came to call for stricter adherence to the Hadith.<ref name="falaky">{{cite journal |last1=Falaky |first1=Fayçal |date=2018 |title=Radical Islam, Tolerance, and the Enlightenment |journal=Studies in Eighteenth-Century Culture |volume=47 |pages=265–266 |doi=10.1353/sec.2018.0026 |s2cid=149570040}}</ref><ref name="evans">{{cite journal |last1=Evans |first1=Daniel |date=2013 |title=Oppression and Subalternity: Homosexual and Transgender in Islam |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oz_wBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA109 |url-status=live |journal=Journal of the International Relations and Affairs Group |volume=3 |issue=1 |pages=109–110 |isbn=9781304399694 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034035/https://books.google.com/books?id=oz_wBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA109 |archive-date=2023-04-19 |access-date=2020-05-28}}</ref><ref name="dialmy" /> In 1744, Muhammad bin Saud, the tribal ruler of the town of [[Diriyah]], endorsed [[ibn Abd al-Wahhab]]'s mission and the two swore an oath to establish a state together run according to true Islamic principles. For the next seventy years, until the dismantlement of the first state in 1818, the Wahhabis dominated from [[Damascus]] to [[Baghdad]]. Homosexuality, which had been largely tolerated in the [[Ottoman Empire]], also became criminalized, and those found guilty were thrown to their deaths from the top of the minarets.<ref name="falaky" />

In 1858, the [[Tanzimat]] reforms in the Ottoman Empire nullified an earlier ruling on homosexuality, effectively making it decriminalized.<ref>{{cite news |author=Tehmina Kazi |date=7 October 2011 |title=The Ottoman empire's secular history undermines sharia claims |newspaper=UK Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2011/oct/07/ottoman-empire-secular-history-sharia |url-status=live |access-date=12 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401142651/https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2011/oct/07/ottoman-empire-secular-history-sharia |archive-date=1 April 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=Ishtiaq Hussain |date=15 February 2011 |title=The Tanzimat: Secular Reforms in the Ottoman Empire |url=http://faith-matters.org/images/stories/fm-publications/the-tanzimat-final-web.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161017061131/http://faith-matters.org/images/stories/fm-publications/the-tanzimat-final-web.pdf |archive-date=17 October 2016 |access-date=6 October 2012 |publisher=Faith Matters}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ozsoy |first1=Elif Ceylan |title=Decolonizing Decriminalization Analyses: Did the Ottomans Decriminalize Homosexuality in 1858? |journal=Journal of Homosexuality |date=2021 |volume=68 |issue=12 |pages=1979–2002 |doi=10.1080/00918369.2020.1715142|pmid=32069182 |hdl=10871/120331 |s2cid=<!-- 211191107 --> |hdl-access=free }}</ref> However, authors Lapidus and Salaymeh write that before the 19th century Ottoman society had been open and welcoming to homosexuals, and that by the 1850s via European influence they began censoring homosexuality in their society.<ref name="lapidus">{{Cite book |author1=Ira M. Lapidus |title=A History of Islamic Societies |author2=Lena Salaymeh |publisher=Cambridge University Press (Kindle edition) |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-521-51430-9 |pages=361–362 |quote=The attitudes toward homosexuality in the Ottoman Empire underwent a dramatic change during the 19th century. Before that time, Ottoman societal norms accepted homoerotic relations as normal, despite condemnation of homosexuality by religious scholars. The Ottoman Sultanic law (''[[Qanun (law)|qanun]]'') tended to equalize the treatment of hetero- and homosexuals. Dream interpretation literature accepted homosexuality as natural, and ''[[Karagöz and Hacivat|karagoz]]'', the principal character of popular puppet theater, engaged in both active and passive gay sex. However, in the 19th century, Ottoman society started to be influenced by European ideas about sexuality as well as the criticism leveled at the Ottoman society by European authors for its sexual and gender norms, including homosexuality. This criticism associated the weakness of the Ottoman state and corruption of the Ottoman government with Ottoman sexual corruption. By the 1850s, these ideas were prompting embarrassment and self-censorship among the Ottoman public regarding traditional attitudes toward sex in general and homosexuality in particular. Dream interpretation literature declined, the puppet theater was purged of its coarser elements, and homoeroticism began to be regarded as abnormal and shameful.}}</ref> In [[Iran]], several hundred political opponents were executed in the aftermath of the [[Iranian Revolution|1979 Islamic Revolution]] and justified it by accusing them of homosexuality. Homosexual intercourse became a capital offense in Iran's ''Islamic Penal Code'' in 1991. Though the grounds for execution in Iran are difficult to track, there is evidence that several people were hanged for homosexual behavior in 2005–2006 and in 2016, mostly in cases of dubious charges of rape.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Asal, V. |title=Legal Path Dependence and the Long Arm of the Religious State: Sodomy Provisions and Gay Rights Across Nations and Over Time |author2=Sommer, U. |publisher=State University of New York Press |page=64}}</ref><ref name="economist">{{cite news |date=6 June 2018 |title=How homosexuality became a crime in the Middle East |newspaper=The Economist |url=https://www.economist.com/open-future/2018/06/06/how-homosexuality-became-a-crime-in-the-middle-east |url-status=live |access-date=4 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190703034324/https://www.economist.com/open-future/2018/06/06/how-homosexuality-became-a-crime-in-the-middle-east |archive-date=3 July 2019}}</ref> In some countries like Iran and [[Iraq]] the dominant discourse is that Western imperialism has spread homosexuality.<ref name="evans" /> In [[Egypt]], though homosexuality is not explicitly criminalized, it has been widely prosecuted under vaguely formulated "morality" laws. Under the current rule of [[Abdel Fattah el-Sisi]], arrests of LGBTQ individuals have risen fivefold, apparently reflecting an effort to appeal to conservatives.<ref name="economist" /> In [[Uzbekistan]], an anti-sodomy law, passed after [[World War II]] with the goal of increasing the birth rate, was invoked in 2004 against a gay rights activist, who was imprisoned and subjected to extreme abuse.<ref name="ahmadi">{{cite journal |author=Shafiqa Ahmadi |year=2012 |title=Islam and Homosexuality: Religious Dogma, Colonial Rule, and the Quest for Belonging |url=https://scholarship.law.stjohns.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1709&context=jcred |url-status=live |journal=Journal of Civil Rights and Economic Development |volume=26 |issue=3 |pages=557–558 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190404044040/https://scholarship.law.stjohns.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1709&context=jcred |archive-date=2019-04-04 |access-date=2019-04-04}}</ref> In [[Iraq]], where homosexuality is legal, the breakdown of law and order following the [[Iraq conflict (2003–present)|Second Gulf War]] allowed Islamist militias and vigilantes to act on their prejudice against gays, with [[ISIS]] gaining particular notoriety for the gruesome acts of anti-LGBTQ violence committed under its rule of parts of Syria and Iraq.<ref name="economist" /> Scott Siraj al-Haqq Kugle has argued that while Muslims "commemorate the early days of Islam when they were oppressed as a marginalized few", many of them now forget their history and fail to protect "Muslims who are gay, transgender and lesbian."<ref>{{cite book |author=Scott Siraj al-Haqq Kugle |title=Living Out Islam: Voices of Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender Muslims |title-link=Living Out Islam: Voices of Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender Muslims |date=2013 |publisher=NYU Press |pages=21–22}}</ref>[[File:Lining up to use a boy.jpg|thumb|upright|Ottoman illustration depicting a young man used for group sex (from ''Sawaqub al-Manaquib''), 19th century]]

According to Georg Klauda, in the 19th and early 20th century, homosexual sexual contact was viewed as relatively commonplace in parts of the Middle East, owing in part to widespread [[sex segregation]], which made heterosexual encounters outside marriage more difficult.<ref name="KlaudaGlob">Klauda, Georg (English translation by Angelus Novus). "[http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2010/klauda081210.html Globalizing Homophobia] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140616154009/http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2010/klauda081210.html|date=2014-06-16}}" (). ''[[MRZine]]'', ''[[Monthly Review]]''. 08.12.10. Previous version appeared in ''Phase 2'' No. 10 (December 2003). Also published as the first chapter of ''Die Vertreibung aus dem Serail: Europa und die Heteronormalisierung der islamischen Welt'' (Berlin: Männerschwarm-Verlag, 2008). Start page [https://books.google.com/books?id=MD4qAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA15 15]{{Dead link|date=April 2023|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}.<!--Start text: "Nach dem 11. September 2001 war eine"-->Retrieved on 26 June 2014.</ref> Klauda states that "Countless writers and artists such as [[André Gide]], [[Oscar Wilde]], [[Edward M. Forster]], and [[Jean Genet]] made pilgrimages in the 19th and 20th centuries from homophobic Europe to Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, and various other Arab countries, where homosexual sex was not only met without any discrimination or subcultural ghettoization whatsoever, but rather, additionally as a result of rigid segregation of the sexes, seemed to be available on every corner."<ref name="KlaudaGlob" /> Views about homosexuality have never been universal all across the Islamic world.<ref name="power">{{cite journal |last1=Power |first1=Bernie |last2=Riddell |first2=Peter |date=2019 |title=Islam and Homosexuality |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3tmjDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA101 |url-status=live |journal=Engaging Ethically in a Strange New World: A View from Down Under – Australian College of Theology Monograph Series |pages=101–123 |isbn=9781532688034 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034026/https://books.google.com/books?id=3tmjDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA101 |archive-date=2023-04-19 |access-date=2020-05-28}}</ref> With reference to the Muslim world more broadly, Tilo Beckers writes that "Besides the endogenous changes in the interpretation of scriptures having a deliberalizing influence that came from within Islamic cultures, the rejection of homosexuality in Islam gained momentum through the exogenous effects of European colonialism, that is, the import of Western cultural understandings of homosexuality as a perversion."<ref name="beckers">Tilo Beckers, "Islam and the Acceptance of Homosexuality," in ''Islam and Homosexuality, Volume 1'', ed. Samar Habib, 64–65  (Praeger, 2009).</ref> [[University of Münster]] professor Thomas Bauer points that even though there were many orders of stoning for homosexuality, there is not a single proven case of it being carried out. Bauer continues that "Although contemporary Islamist movements decry homosexuality as a form of Western decadence, the current prejudice against it among Muslim publics stems from an amalgamation of traditional Islamic legal theory with popular notions that were imported from Europe during the colonial era, when Western military and economic superiority made Western notions of sexuality particularly influential in the Muslim world."<ref>{{cite news |author=Viola van Melis |date=16 November 2011 |title=Islam tolerierte früher Homosexuelle |newspaper=HPD Humanistischer Pressedienst |url=https://hpd.de/node/12315 |url-status=live |access-date=20 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190503163831/https://hpd.de/node/12315 |archive-date=3 May 2019}}</ref>

In some Muslim-majority countries, current anti-LGBTQ laws were enacted by United Kingdom or Soviet organs and retained following independence.<ref name="ahmadi" /><ref name="economist" /> The 1860 [[Indian Penal Code]], which included an [[Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code|anti-sodomy statute]], was used as a basis of penal laws in other parts of the [[British Empire|empire]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Shanon Shah |title=Islam's LGBT allies |url=https://musliminstitute.org/freethinking/gender/islams-lgbt-allies |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190503163830/https://musliminstitute.org/freethinking/gender/islams-lgbt-allies |archive-date=3 May 2019 |access-date=5 April 2019 |website=Muslim Institute}}</ref> However, as Dynes and Donaldson point out, North African countries under French colonial tutelage lacked anti-homosexual laws which were only born afterwards, with the full weight of Islamic opinion descending on those who, on the model of the gay liberationists of the West, would seek to make "homosexuality" (above all, adult men taking passive roles) publicly respectable.<ref name="dynesdonaldson">{{cite book |last1=Dynes |first1=Wayne R. |title=Asian homosexuality |last2=Donaldson |first2=Stephen |date=1992 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=9780815305484 |page=X}}</ref> [[Jordan]], [[Bahrain]], and - [[Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code|more recently]] - India, a country with a substantial Muslim minority, have abolished the criminal penalties for consensual homosexual acts introduced under colonial rule. Persecution of homosexuals has been exacerbated in recent decades by a rise in Islamic fundamentalism and the emergence of the gay-rights movement in the West, which allowed Islamists to paint homosexuality as a noxious [[Western world|Western import]].<ref name="economist" />

== Scripture and Islamic jurisprudence ==

=== In the Quran ===
==== Messengers to Lot ====
{{Main|Islamic view of Lot|Liwat}}

[[File:Lot BnF Persan 54 fol. 40.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Lot in Islam|Lut]] fleeing the [[Sodom and Gomorrah#Islamic|city]] with his [[Lot's daughters|daughters]]; his [[Lot's wife#Islamic view|wife]] is killed by a rock. [[Persian miniature]] (16th century), [[Bibliothèque nationale de France|National Library of France]], [[Paris]].]]

The Quran contains several allusions to [[homosexual activity]], which has prompted considerable [[Tafsir|exegetical]] and [[Islamic jurisprudence|legal]] commentaries over the centuries.<ref name=EoQ>{{cite encyclopedia |author-last=Rowson |author-first=Everett K. |year=2006 |title=Homosexuality |editor-last=McAuliffe |editor-first=Jane Dammen |editor-link=Jane Dammen McAuliffe |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopaedia of the Qurʾān]] |volume=2 |location=[[Leiden]] |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |doi=10.1163/1875-3922_q3_EQCOM_00085 |pages=444–445 |isbn=90-04-14743-8}}</ref> The subject is most clearly addressed in the story of [[Sodom and Gomorrah#Islamic|Sodom and Gomorrah]] (seven [[Ayah|verses]])<ref name="Muhammad Homosexuality">{{cite book |author-last=Wafer |author-first=Jim |year=1997 |chapter=Muhammad and Male Homosexuality |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6Zw-AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA88 |editor1-last=Murray |editor1-first=Stephen O. |editor1-link=Stephen O. Murray |editor2-last=Roscoe |editor2-first=Will |title=[[Islamic Homosexualities|Islamic Homosexualities: Culture, History, and Literature]] |location=[[New York City|New York]] and [[London]] |publisher=[[NYU Press]] |pages=88–96 |doi=10.18574/nyu/9780814761083.003.0006 |isbn=9780814774687 |jstor=j.ctt9qfmm4 |oclc=35526232 |s2cid=141668547 |access-date=2021-04-20 |archive-date=2023-03-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230323020425/https://books.google.com/books?id=6Zw-AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA88 |url-status=live }}</ref> after the men of the city demand to have sex with the male messengers sent by God to Lot (or Lut).<ref name=EoQ/><ref name=QL1>{{qref|7|80-84}}; {{qref|11|77-83}}; {{qref|21|74}}; {{qref|22|43}}; {{qref|26|165–175}}; {{qref|27|56–59}}; and {{qref|29|27–33}}.</ref><ref name=dr>Duran (1993) p. 179</ref><ref name="MC">Kligerman (2007) pp. 53–54</ref> The Quranic narrative largely conforms to that found in [[Book of Genesis|Genesis]].<ref name=EoQ/> In one passage the Quran says that the men "solicited his guests of him" ([[Quran 54:37]]), using an expression that parallels phrasing used to describe [[Potiphar and his wife|the attempted seduction]] of [[Joseph in Islam|Joseph]], and in multiple passages they are accused of "coming with lust" to men instead of [[Women in Islam|women]] (or their wives).<ref name=EoQ/> The Quran terms this lewdness or [[fahisha]] ({{langx|ar|[[wikt:فاحشة|فاحشة]]|fāḥiša}}) unprecedented in the history of the world:

{{Blockquote|text=And ˹remember˺ when Lot scolded ˹the men of˺ his people, ˹saying,˺ "Do you commit a shameful deed that no man has ever done before? You lust after men instead of women! You are certainly transgressors." But his people’s only response was to say, "Expel them from your land! They are a people who wish to remain chaste!" So We saved him and his family except his wife, who was one of the doomed. We poured upon them a rain ˹of brimstone˺. See what was the end of the wicked!|author={{qref|7|80-84|c=y}}}}

The destruction of the "people of Lut" is thought to be explicitly associated with their sexual practices.<ref name="Muhammad Homosexuality"/> Later exegetical literature built on these verses as writers attempted to give their own views as to what went on; and there was general agreement among exegetes that the "lewdness" alluded to by the Quranic passages was attempted [[Sodomy#Islam|sodomy]] (specifically [[anal intercourse]]) between men.<ref name=EoQ/>

Some Muslim scholars, such as the ''[[Zahiri school|Ẓāhirī scholar]]'' (literalist) [[Ibn Hazm|ibn Ḥazm]], argue that the "people of Lut" were destroyed not because of participation in homosexuality ''per se'', but because of disregarding [[Prophets and messengers in Islam|Prophets and messengers]] and attempting to [[rape]] one of them.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Kuggle|first1=Scott|last2=Hunt|first2=Stephen|title=Masculinity, Homosexuality and the Defence of Islam: A Case Study of Yusuf al-Qaradawi's Media Fatwa|journal=Religion and Gender|volume=2|issue=2|date=2012|pages=271–272}}</ref><ref name=kugle/>{{rp|194–195}}<ref>Habib, S. (2008). Queer-Friendly Islamic Hermeneutics. Isim Review, 21(1), 32-33.
Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/1887/17231</ref>

The sins of the "people of Lut" ({{langx|ar|[[wikt:لوط|لوط]]}}) subsequently became proverbial and the [[Arabic]] words for the act of [[anal sex between men]] such as ''[[liwat]]'' ({{langx|ar|[[wikt:لواط|لواط]]|liwāṭ}}) and for a person who performs such acts ({{langx|ar|[[wikt:لوطي|لوطي]]|lūṭi}}) both derive from his name, although Lut was not the one demanding sex.<ref name="ReferenceA">Wayne Dynes, ''Encyclopaedia of Homosexuality'', New York, 1990.</ref>

Some Western and Modern Islamic scholars argue that in the course of the Quranic Lot story, homosexuality in the modern sense is not addressed, but that the destruction of the "people of Lut" was a result of breaking the ancient [[hospitality law]] and [[sexual violence]], in this case they attempted [[Rape of males|rape of men]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=Kugle, Scott Siraj al-Haqq (2010) Homosexuality in Islam: Critical Reflections on Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender Muslims. Oxford: Oneworld Publications|pages=51–53|quote=the story is really about infidelity and how the Tribe of Lot schemed for ways to reject his Prophethood and his public standing in the community [...] They rejected him in a variety of ways, and their sexual assault of his guests was only one expression of their inner intention to deny Lot the dignity of being a Prophet and drive him from their cities}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Hazm|first=Ibn|title=Mu'jam fiqh Ibn Hazm al Zahiri|publisher=Dar al-Fikr|year=1966}}</ref>{{Request quotation|date=September 2022}}<ref>{{Cite book|title=Wunibald Müller, Homosexualität – eine Herausforderung für Theologie und Seelsorge, Mainz 1986, p. 64-65.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Andreas Ismail Mohr: "Wie steht der Koran zur Homosexualität?", in: LSVD Berlin-Brandenburg e.V. (Hrsg.): Muslime unter dem Regenbogen. Homosexualität, Migration und Islam. Berlin: Querverlag, 2004, p. 16}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Noegel, Scott B.; Wheeler, Brannon M. (2010). Lot. The A to Z of Prophets in Islam and Judaism. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Incorporated. pp. 118–126. ISBN 978-0810876033}}</ref>

==== ''Zina'' verse ====
Only one passage in the Quran prescribes a strictly legal position. It is not restricted to homosexual behaviour, however, and deals more generally with ''[[zina]]'' ([[Islamic sexual jurisprudence#Illegal sexualities|illicit sexual intercourse]]):<ref name="Muhammad Homosexuality"/>

{{Blockquote|text=˹As for˺ those of your women who commit illegal intercourse—call four witnesses from among yourselves. If they testify, confine the offenders to their homes until they die or Allah ordains a ˹different˺ way for them. And the two among you who commit this sin—discipline them. If they repent and mend their ways, relieve them. Surely Allah is ever Accepting of Repentance, Most Merciful.|author={{qref|4|15-16|c=y}}}}

In the exegetical Islamic literature, this verse has provided the basis for the view that Muhammad took a lenient approach towards male homosexual practices.<ref name="Muhammad Homosexuality"/> The [[Oriental studies|Orientalist scholar]] Pinhas Ben Nahum has argued that "it is obvious that the Prophet viewed the vice with philosophic indifference. Not only is the punishment not indicated—it was probably some public reproach or insult of a slight nature—but mere penitence sufficed to escape the punishment".<ref name="Muhammad Homosexuality"/> Most exegetes hold that these verses refer to illicit heterosexual relationships, although a minority view attributed to the [[Mu'tazilite]] scholar Abu Muslim al-Isfahani interpreted them as referring to homosexual relations. This view was widely rejected by medieval scholars, but has found some acceptance in modern times.<ref name=EoQ/>

==== Cupbearers in paradise ====
Some Quranic verses describing the [[Jannah|Islamic paradise]] refer to perpetually youthful attendants which inhabit it, and they are described as both [[Slavery in Islam|male and female servants]]:<ref name="Rustomji 2017">{{cite book |author-last=Rustomji |author-first=Nerina |year=2017 |chapter=Beauty in the Garden: Aesthetics and the ''Wildān'', ''Ghilmān'', and ''Ḥūr'' |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5_MoDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA297 |editor1-last=Günther |editor1-first=Sebastian |editor2-last=Lawson |editor2-first=Todd |title=Roads to Paradise: Eschatology and Concepts of the Hereafter in Islam |location=[[Leiden]] and [[Boston]] |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |pages=297–307 |series=Islamic History and Civilization |volume=136 |doi=10.1163/9789004333154_014 |isbn=978-90-04-33315-4 |issn=0929-2403 |lccn=2016047258 |access-date=2021-12-01 |archive-date=2023-04-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034025/https://books.google.com/books?id=5_MoDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA297 |url-status=live }}</ref> the females are referred to as ''[[Houri|ḥūr]]'', whereas the males are referred to as ''[[Ghilman|ghilmān]]'', ''wildān'', and ''suqāh''.<ref name="Rustomji 2017"/> The slave boys are referred to in the Quran as "immortal boys" ({{qref|56|17}}, {{qref|76|19}}) or "young men" ({{qref|52|24}}) who serve [[Wine#Islam|wine]] and meals to the [[Blessing#Islam|blessed]].<ref name="Rustomji 2017"/> Although the ''[[tafsir]]'' literature does not interpret this as a homoerotic allusion, the connection was made in other literary genres, mostly humorously.<ref name=EoQ/> For example, the [[Abbasid Caliphate|Abbasid-era]] poet [[Abu Nuwas]] wrote:<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=Homosexuality and Religion: An Encyclopedia|title=Islam|author=Elyse Semerdjian|page=132|editor=Jeffrey S. Siker|publisher=Greenwood Press|year=2007}}</ref>

{{blockquote|
A beautiful lad came carrying the wine <br />
With smooth hands and fingers dyed with henna <br />
And with long hair of golden curls around his cheeks ... <br />
I have a lad who is like the beautiful lads of paradise <br />
And his eyes are big and beautiful}}

Jurists of the [[Hanafi]] school took up the question seriously, considering, but ultimately rejecting the suggestion that homosexual pleasures were, like wine, forbidden in this world but enjoyed in the [[Afterlife#Islam|afterlife]].<ref name=EoQ/><ref name=iranica-law/> Ibn 'Âbidîn's Hâshiya refers to a debate among the scholars of Baghdad in the eleventh century, that some scholars argued in favor of that analogy.<ref>{{cite book |last= Lange|first= Christian|author-link= |date= 2016|title= Paradise and Hell in Islamic Traditions|url= |location= Cambridge United Kingdom|publisher= Cambridge University Press|page= |isbn=978-0-521-50637-3}}</ref>

=== In the hadith ===
The [[hadith]] (sayings and actions attributed to Muhammad) show that [[homosexual behaviour]] was not unknown in [[Arabian Peninsula#Rise of Islam|seventh-century Arabia]].<ref name="Islamic Homosexualities"/><ref name="autogenerated1983"/> However, given that the Quran did not specify the punishment of homosexual practices, Islamic jurists increasingly turned to several "more explicit"<ref name=EoQ/><ref name="hmy"/> hadiths in an attempt to find guidance on appropriate punishment.<ref name="autogenerated1983">{{cite encyclopedia |year=1986 |title=Liwāṭ |editor1-last=Bosworth |editor1-first=C. E. |editor1-link=Clifford Edmund Bosworth |editor2-last=van Donzel |editor2-first=E. J. |editor2-link=Emeri Johannes van Donzel |editor3-last=Heinrichs |editor3-first=W. P. |editor3-link=Wolfhart Heinrichs |editor4-last=Lewis |editor4-first=B. |editor5-last=Pellat |editor5-first=Ch. |editor5-link=Charles Pellat |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopaedia of Islam#2nd edition, EI2|Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition]] |location=[[Leiden]] |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |volume=5 |doi=10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_4677 |isbn=978-90-04-16121-4}}</ref><ref name="hmy">{{cite web |author1=Mohd Izwan bin Md Yusof |display-authors=1|author2=Muhd. Najib bin Abdul Kadir |author3=Mazlan bin Ibrahim |author4=Khader bin Ahmad |author5=Murshidi bin Mohd Noor |author6=Saiful Azhar bin Saadon |title=Hadith Sahih on Behaviour of LGBT |url=http://www.islam.gov.my/images/ePenerbitan/Hadis-hadis_Sahih_Berkaitan_Perlakuan_LGBT_BI.pdf |website=islam.gov.my |publisher=[[Government of Malaysia]] |access-date=26 July 2019 |language=en |archive-date=24 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181024202538/http://www.islam.gov.my/images/ePenerbitan/Hadis-hadis_Sahih_Berkaitan_Perlakuan_LGBT_BI.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

{{blockquote|From Abu Musa al-Ash'ari, the Prophet states that: "If a woman comes upon a woman, they are both adulteresses, if a man comes upon a man, then they are both adulterers."|Al-Tabarani in al-Mu‘jam al-Awat: 4157, Al-Bayhaqi, Su‘ab al-Iman: 5075}}

While there are no reports relating to homosexuality in the best known and authentic hadith collections of ''[[Sahih al-Bukhari]]'' and ''[[Sahih Muslim]]'', other canonical collections record a number of condemnations of the "act of the people of Lut" (male-to-male [[anal intercourse]]).<ref name=iranica-law/>

According to [[Oliver Leaman]], hadiths seem to permit homoerotic feelings as long as they are not translated into action.<ref name="Islamic Homosexualities"/><ref name="leaman">{{cite encyclopedia |first=Oliver |last=Leaman |entry=Homosexuality |encyclopedia=The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World |editor=John L. Esposito |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |year=2009 |url=http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195305135.001.0001/acref-9780195305135-e-0949 |url-access=subscription |quote=This ambiguity is reflected in the ḥadīth of the Prophet, some of which make a distinction between the partners in a homosexual act, and many of which seem to permit homoerotic feelings, as long as those feelings are not translated into action. |isbn=9780195305135 |access-date=2017-07-07 |archive-date=2017-08-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811201009/http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195305135.001.0001/acref-9780195305135-e-0949 |url-status=live }}</ref> However, in one hadith attributed to Muhammad himself, which exists in multiple variants, the Islamic prophet acknowledged homoerotic temptation towards young boys and warned his [[Sahaba|Companions]] against it: "Do not gaze at the beardless youths, for verily they have eyes more tempting than the ''[[houris]]''"<ref name="Muhammad Homosexuality"/><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZEAEnGz7CLAC&pg=PA14|page=14|author=Elyse Semerdjian|title="Off the Straight Path": Illicit Sex, Law, and Community in Ottoman Aleppo|publisher=Syracuse University Press|year=2008|quote=one hadith acknowledged the temptation to indulge in sex with young men: "Do not gaze at the beardless youths, for verily they have eyes more tempting than the ''houris'' [big-eyed maidens]."|isbn=9780815631736}}</ref> or "... for verily they resemble the ''houris''".<ref name="Muhammad Homosexuality"/><ref>{{cite book|script-title=ar:كشف الخفاء ومزيل الإلباس |title=Kash Al-khafa |author=إسماعيل العجلوني(Ismail Ajlouni)|page=hadith no. 2997|quote={{lang|ar|لا تنظروا إلى المردان فإن فيهم لمحة من الحور}}}} (cf. [[Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic]] 3rd ed. p. 878: {{lang|ar|فيه لمحة من ابيه}} = he looks like his father)</ref> These beardless youths are also described as wearing sumptuous robes and having perfumed hair.<ref name="Muhammad Homosexuality"/><ref>{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=Homosexuality and Religion: An Encyclopedia|title=Islam|author=Elyse Semerdjian|page=131|editor=Jeffrey S. Siker|publisher=Greenwood Press|year=2007|quote=The Prophet also issued warnings such as "do not gaze at the beardless youths, for verily they have eyes more tempting than the houris" (Wright, 7). These beardless boys are also described as wearing sumptuous robes and having perfumed hair.}}</ref> Consequently, Islamic religious leaders, skeptical of Muslim men's capacity of self-control over their sexual urges, have forbidden looking and yearning both at males and females.<ref name="Islamic Homosexualities"/>

In addition, there is a number of "purported (but mutually inconsistent) reports" (''athar'') of punishments of sodomy ordered by some of the early [[caliphs]].<ref name=iranica-law/><ref name="Muhammad Homosexuality"/> [[Abu Bakr]] apparently recommended toppling a wall on the culprit, or else [[Death by burning|burning him alive]],<ref name="Muhammad Homosexuality"/> while [[Ali ibn Abi Talib]] is said to have ordered death by stoning for one sodomite and had another thrown head-first from the top of the highest building in the town; according to [[Ibn Abbas]], the latter punishment must be followed by [[Stoning in Islam|stoning]].<ref name="autogenerated1983"/><ref name="Muhammad Homosexuality"/>

There are, however, fewer hadith mentioning homosexual behaviour in women;<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|author1=Al-Hurr al-Aamili|author-link1=Al-Hurr al-Aamili|title=Wasā'il al-Shīʿa|title-link=Wasā'il al-Shīʿa|script-title=ar: وسائل الشيعة|trans-title=Things of the followers|language=ar|at=Hadith number 34467-34481}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Atighetchi|first1=Dariusch|title=Islamic bioethics problems and perspectives|date=2007|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|location=New York|isbn=9781402049620|page=149|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Tdm9V89lW3IC&pg=PA149|access-date=13 July 2017|language=en|archive-date=19 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034034/https://books.google.com/books?id=Tdm9V89lW3IC&pg=PA149|url-status=live}}</ref>
but punishment (if any) for [[lesbianism]] was not clarified.

===Gender-variant people===
{{Main|Mukhannathun}}

In [[Classical Arabic literature|Classical Arabic]] and [[Islamic literature|Islamic]] literature, the plural term ''[[mukhannathun]]'' (singular: ''mukhannath'') was a term used to describe [[Gender variance|gender-variant people]], and it has typically referred to [[Effeminacy|effeminate]] [[men]] or people with ambiguous sexual characteristics, who appeared feminine and functioned sexually or socially in [[Gender roles|roles]] typically carried out by [[women]].<ref name="TEOEM">{{cite journal |last=Rowson |first=Everett K. |author-link=Everett K. Rowson |title=The Effeminates of Early Medina |journal=[[Journal of the American Oriental Society]] |publisher=[[American Oriental Society]] |volume=111 |issue=4 |pages=671–693 |date=October 1991 |url=http://www.williamapercy.com/wiki/images/The_effeminates_of_early_medina.pdf |doi=10.2307/603399 |issn=0003-0279 |jstor=603399 |citeseerx=10.1.1.693.1504 |lccn=12032032 |oclc=47785421 |s2cid=163738149 |access-date=7 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081001195534/http://www.williamapercy.com/wiki/images/The_effeminates_of_early_medina.pdf |archive-date=1 October 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="TransgenderHealth 2020"/><ref name="Geissinger 2021">{{cite book |author-last=Geissinger |author-first=Ash |year=2021 |chapter=Applying Gender and Queer Theory to Pre-modern sources |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ABYHEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA101 |editor-last=Howe |editor-first=Justine |title=The Routledge Handbook of Islam and Gender |location=[[London]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Routledge]] |edition=1st |pages=101–115 |doi=10.4324/9781351256568-6 |isbn=978-1-351-25656-8 |s2cid=224909490 |access-date=2021-11-09 |archive-date=2023-04-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034025/https://books.google.com/books?id=ABYHEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA101 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Transgenderism 2017">{{cite journal |last=Alipour |first=Mehrdad |date=2017 |title=Islamic shari'a law, neotraditionalist Muslim scholars and transgender sex-reassignment surgery: A case study of Ayatollah Khomeini's and Sheikh al-Tantawi's fatwas |journal=[[International Journal of Transgenderism]] |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]] |volume=18 |issue=1 |pages=91–103 |doi=10.1080/15532739.2016.1250239 |doi-access=free |issn=1553-2739 |lccn=2004213389 |oclc=56795128 |s2cid=152120329 }}</ref> According to the Iranian scholar Mehrdad Alipour, "in the [[Pre-modern Islamic societies|premodern period]], Muslim societies were aware of five manifestations of gender ambiguity: This can be seen through figures such as the ''khasi'' (eunuch), the ''[[Hijra (South Asia)|hijra]]'', the ''mukhannath'', the ''mamsuh'' and the ''khuntha'' (hermaphrodite/intersex)."<ref name="Transgenderism 2017"/> [[Gender studies|Gender specialists]] Aisya Aymanee M. Zaharin and Maria Pallotta-Chiarolli give the following explanation of the meaning of the term ''mukhannath'' and its derivate Arabic forms in the hadith literature:
{{blockquote|Various academics such as Alipour (2017) and Rowson (1991) point to references in the ''Hadith'' to the existence of ''mukhannath'': a man who carries femininity in his movements, in his appearance, and in the softness of his voice. The Arabic term for a [[trans woman]] is ''mukhannith'' as they want to change their sex characteristics, while ''mukhannath'' presumably do not/have not. The ''mukhannath'' or effeminate man is obviously male, but naturally behaves like a female, unlike the ''khuntha'', an [[Intersex|intersex person]], who could be either male or female. Ironically, while there is no obvious mention of ''mukhannath'', ''mukhannith'', or ''khuntha'' in the Qur’ān, this holy book clearly recognizes that there are some people, who are neither male nor female, or are in between, and/or could also be "non-procreative" [عَقِيم] ([[Sura 42|Surah 42 Ash-Shuraa]], verse 49–50).<ref name="TransgenderHealth 2020"/>}}

Moreover, within Islam, there is a tradition of the elaboration and refinement of extended religious doctrines through scholarship. This doctrine contains a passage by the scholar and hadith collector [[An-Nawawi]]:<blockquote>A mukhannath is the one ("male") who carries in his movements, in his appearance and in his language the characteristics of a woman. There are two types; the first is the one in whom these characteristics are innate, he did not put them on by himself, and therein is no guilt, no blame and no shame, as long as he does not perform any (illicit) act or exploit it for money (prostitution etc.). The second type acts like a woman out of immoral purposes and he is the sinner and blameworthy.<ref name="TEOEM"/></blockquote>The hadith collection of Bukhari (compiled in the 9th century from earlier [[oral tradition]]s) includes a report regarding ''[[mukhannathun]]'', [[effeminate]] men who were granted access to secluded women's quarters and engaged in other non-[[normative]] [[gender]] behavior:<ref name="TEOEM"/> 

Another hadith also mention the punishment of banishment, both in connection with Umm Salama's servant and a man who worked as a musician. Muhammad described the musician as a ''mukhannath'' and threatened to banish him if he did not end his unacceptable career.<ref name="TEOEM"/>

According to [[Everett K. Rowson]], professor of [[Middle Eastern studies|Middle Eastern]] and [[Islamic Studies]] at [[New York University]], none of the sources state that Muhammad banished more than two ''mukhannathun'', and it is not clear to what extent the action was taken because of their breaking of gender rules in itself or because of the "perceived damage to social institutions from their activities as matchmakers and their corresponding access to women".<ref name="TEOEM"/>

=== Traditional Islamic jurisprudence ===
The scarcity of concrete prescriptions from hadith and the contradictory nature of information about the actions of early authorities resulted in the lack of agreement among classical jurists as to how homosexual activity should be treated.<ref name=iranica-law>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Rowson |first=Everett K. |title=HOMOSEXUALITY ii. IN ISLAMIC LAW |url=https://iranicaonline.org/articles/homosexuality-ii |volume=XII/4 |pages=441–445 |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Iranica]] |publisher=[[Columbia University]] |location=[[New York City|New York]] |date=30 December 2012 |orig-year=15 December 2004 |doi=10.1163/2330-4804_EIRO_COM_11037 |doi-access=free |issn=2330-4804 |access-date=13 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130517035334/https://iranicaonline.org/articles/homosexuality-ii |archive-date=17 May 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="ia601301.us.archive.org">{{cite encyclopedia|author=Everett K. Rowson|title=Homosexuality|editor=Richard C. Martin|encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World|publisher=MacMillan Reference USA|year=2004}}</ref>
Classical Islamic jurists did not deal with homosexuality as a [[sexual orientation]], since the latter concept is modern and has no equivalent in traditional law, which dealt with it under the technical terms of ''[[liwat]]'' and ''[[zina]]''.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Habib|first=Samar|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9y_TyzK9_5oC&q=homosexuality+fiqh&pg=PA217|title=Islam and Homosexuality|date=2010|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-37903-1|pages=204|language=en|access-date=2020-10-02|archive-date=2023-04-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034026/https://books.google.com/books?id=9y_TyzK9_5oC&q=homosexuality+fiqh&pg=PA217|url-status=live}}</ref>

Broadly, traditional Islamic law took the view that homosexual activity could not be legally sanctioned because it takes place outside religiously recognised [[Marriage in Islam|marriage]]s.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Homosexuality|editor=John L. Esposito|encyclopedia=The Oxford Dictionary of Islam|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Oxford|year=2014|url=http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t125/e874|access-date=2017-07-07|archive-date=2021-12-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211214201353/http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t125/e874|url-status=dead}}</ref> All [[Fiqh|major schools of law]] consider [[Islamic views on anal sex|liwat]] (anal sex) as a punishable offence.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Habib|first=Samar|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9y_TyzK9_5oC&q=homosexuality+fiqh&pg=PA217|title=Islam and Homosexuality|date=2010|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-37903-1|pages=208|language=en|access-date=2020-10-02|archive-date=2023-04-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034026/https://books.google.com/books?id=9y_TyzK9_5oC&q=homosexuality+fiqh&pg=PA217|url-status=live}}</ref> Most [[Madhhab|legal schools]] treat homosexual intercourse with penetration similarly to unlawful heterosexual intercourse under the rubric of ''[[zina]]'', but there are differences of opinion with respect to methods of punishment.<ref name=peters>{{Cite book |first=Rudolph|last=Peters| year=2006 | title=Crime and Punishment in Islamic Law: Theory and Practice from the Sixteenth to the Twenty-First Century|url=https://archive.org/details/crimepunishmenti00pete_738|url-access=limited|publisher=Cambridge University Press|pages=[https://archive.org/details/crimepunishmenti00pete_738/page/n73 61]–62}}</ref> Some legal schools "prescribed capital punishment for sodomy, but others opted only for a relatively mild discretionary punishment."<ref name="ia601301.us.archive.org"/> The [[Hanbali]]tes are the most severe among Sunni schools, insisting on capital punishment for anal sex in all cases, while the other schools generally restrict punishment to flagellation with or without banishment, unless the culprit is ''muhsan'' (Muslim free married adult), and [[Hanafi]]s often suggest no physical punishment at all, leaving the choice to the judge's discretion.<ref name="autogenerated1983" /><ref name=peters/> The founder of the Hanafi school [[Abu Hanifa]] refused to recognize the analogy between sodomy and ''zina'', although his two principal students disagreed with him on this point.<ref name=iranica-law/> The Hanafi scholar [[Al-Jaṣṣās|Abu Bakr Al-Jassas]] (d. 981 AD/370 AH) argued that the two hadiths on killing homosexuals "are not reliable by any means and no legal punishment can be prescribed based on them".<ref name="islamonline">{{cite web|url=https://billmuehlenberg.com/web-archive/islamonline-beheading-penalty-homosexuals/|title=IslamOnline: Should beheading be the penalty for homosexuals? – CultureWatch|work=BillMuehlenberg.com|access-date=5 April 2017|archive-date=5 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170805015238/https://billmuehlenberg.com/web-archive/islamonline-beheading-penalty-homosexuals/|url-status=live}}</ref> Where capital punishment is prescribed and a particular method is recommended, the methods range from stoning (Hanbali, [[Maliki]]), to the sword (some Hanbalites and [[Shafi'i]]tes), or leaving it to the court to choose between several methods, including throwing the culprit off a high building (Shi'ite).<ref name=peters/>

For unclear reasons, the treatment of homosexuality in [[Twelver Shi'ism]] jurisprudence is generally harsher than in Sunni fiqh, while [[Zaydi]] and [[Isma'ili]] Shia jurists took positions similar to the Sunnis.<ref name=iranica-law/> Where flogging is prescribed, there is a tendency for indulgence and some recommend that the prescribed penalty should not be applied in full, with [[Ibn Hazm]] reducing the number of strokes to 10.<ref name="autogenerated1983" /> There was debate as to whether the active and passive partners in anal sex should be punished equally.<ref name="leaman" /> Beyond penetrative anal sex, there was "general agreement" that "other homosexual acts (including any between females) were lesser offenses, subject only to discretionary punishment."<ref name="ia601301.us.archive.org"/> Some jurists viewed sexual intercourse as possible only for an individual who possesses a [[phallus]];<ref name="Omar">{{cite web |last=Omar |first=Sara |title=The Oxford Encyclopedia of Islam and Law |url=http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t349/e0010 |publisher=Oxford Islamic Studies Online |access-date=3 May 2013 |archive-date=27 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191027103159/http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t349/e0010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> hence those definitions of sexual intercourse that rely on the entry of as little of the [[Corona of glans penis|corona of the phallus]] into a partner's orifice.<ref name="Omar"/> Since women do not possess a phallus and cannot have intercourse with one another, they are, in this interpretation, physically incapable of committing [[zina|zinā]].<ref name="Omar"/>

====Practicality====
Since a ''[[hadd]]'' punishment for ''zina'' requires testimony from four witnesses of the actual act of penetration or a confession from the accused repeated four times, the legal criteria for the prescribed harsh punishments of homosexual acts were very difficult to fulfill.<ref name="autogenerated1983" /><ref name="leaman" /> The debates of classical jurists are "to a large extent theoretical, since homosexual relations have always been tolerated" in pre-modern Islamic societies.<ref name="autogenerated1983" /> While it is difficult to determine to what extent the legal sanctions were enforced in different times and places, historical record suggests that the laws were invoked mainly in cases of rape or other "exceptionally blatant infringement on public morals". Documented instances of prosecution for homosexual acts are rare, and those which followed legal procedure prescribed by Islamic law are even rarer.<ref name=iranica-law/>

===Modern interpretation===
In [[Kecia Ali]]'s book, she cites that "contemporary scholars disagree sharply about the Qur'anic perspective on same-sex intimacy." One scholar represents the conventional perspective by arguing that the Qur'an "is very explicit in its condemnation of homosexuality leaving scarcely any loophole for a theological accommodation of homosexuality in Islam." Another scholar argues that "the Qur'an does not address homosexuality or homosexuals explicitly." Overall, Ali says that "there is no one Muslim perspective on anything."<ref>Kecia Ali, ''Sexual Ethics and Islam: Feminist Reflections on Qur'an, Hadith and Jurisprudence '' (Oneworld Publications, 2016), xvi, 103.</ref>

Many Muslim scholars have followed a "[[don't ask, don't tell]]" policy in regards to homosexuality in Islam, by treating the subject with passivity.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title = Sexual Ethics & Islam|url = https://archive.org/details/sexualethicsisla00alik|url-access = limited|last = Ali|first = Kecia|publisher = OneWorld Publishing|year = 2006|isbn = 978-1-85168-456-4|location = Oxford, England|page = [https://archive.org/details/sexualethicsisla00alik/page/n118 90]}}</ref>

Mohamed El-Moctar El-Shinqiti, director of the Islamic Center of South Plains in Texas, has argued that "[even though] homosexuality is a grievous sin...[a] no legal punishment is stated in the Qur'an for homosexuality...[b] it is not reported that Prophet Muhammad has punished somebody for committing homosexuality...[c] there is no authentic hadith reported from the Prophet prescribing a punishment for the homosexuals..." Classical hadith scholars such as [[Al-Bukhari]], [[Yahya ibn Ma'in]], [[Al-Nasa'i]], [[Ibn Hazm]], [[Al-Tirmidhi]], and others have disputed the authenticity of hadith reporting these statements.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.onislam.net/english/ask-the-scholar/crimes-and-penalties/disciplinary-penalties-tazir/176732.html |title=Threats to Behead Homosexuals: Shari'ah or Politics? – Disciplinary Penalties (ta'zir) – counsels |publisher=OnIslam.net |access-date=22 April 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130302024245/http://www.onislam.net/english/ask-the-scholar/crimes-and-penalties/disciplinary-penalties-tazir/176732.html|archive-date=2 March 2013}}</ref>

Egyptian Islamist journalist [[Muhammad Jalal Kishk]] also found no punishment for homosexual acts prescribed in the Quran, regarding the hadith that mentioned it as poorly attested. He did not approve of such acts, but believed that Muslims who abstained from sodomy would be rewarded by sex with youthful boys in paradise.<ref name=massad>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780226509587 |url-access=registration |quote=kishk boys. |title=Desiring Arabs |first=Joseph Andoni |last=Massad|publisher=University of Chicago Press|date=2007|pages=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780226509587/page/203 203]–4|isbn=9780226509600 }}</ref>

Faisal Kutty, a professor of Islamic law at Indiana-based [[Valparaiso University Law School]] and Toronto-based [[Osgoode Hall Law School]], commented on the contemporary same-sex marriage debate in a 27 March 2014 essay in the Huffington Post.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/faisal-kutty-/gay-marriage_b_5044372.htmlurl|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140329165113/http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/faisal-kutty-/gay-marriage_b_5044372.htmlurl|url-status=dead|archive-date=29 March 2014|title=Why Gay Marriage May Not Be Contrary To Islam|publisher=Huffingtonpost.ca|access-date=29 March 2014}}</ref>  He acknowledged that while Islamic law iterations prohibit pre- and extra-marital as well as same-sex sexual activity, it does not attempt to "regulate feelings, emotions and urges, but only its translation into action that authorities had declared unlawful". Kutty, who teaches comparative law and legal reasoning, also wrote that many Islamic scholars<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.lamppostproductions.com/the-homosexual-challenge-to-muslim-ethics/ |title= The Homosexual Challenge to Muslim Ethics |date= 13 April 2013 |publisher= LamppostProductions.com |access-date= 29 March 2014 |archive-date= 29 March 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140329214458/http://www.lamppostproductions.com/the-homosexual-challenge-to-muslim-ethics/ |url-status= live }}</ref> have "even argued that homosexual tendencies themselves were not haram [prohibited] but had to be suppressed for the public good".  He claimed that this may not be "what the LGBTQ community wants to hear", but that, "it reveals that even classical Islamic jurists struggled with this issue and had a more sophisticated attitude than many contemporary Muslims". Kutty, who in the past wrote in support of allowing Islamic principles in dispute resolution, also noted that "most Muslims have no problem extending full human rights to those—even Muslims—who live together 'in sin{{'"}}.  He argued that it therefore seems hypocritical to deny fundamental rights to same-sex couples. Moreover, he concurred with Islamic legal scholar Mohamed Fadel<ref>{{cite web |url= http://islawmix.org/election2012/samesex.html |title= On Same-Sex Marriage |publisher= Islawmix.org |access-date= 29 March 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130929082849/http://islawmix.org/election2012/samesex.html |archive-date= 29 September 2013 |url-status= usurped }}</ref> in arguing that this is not about changing Islamic marriage (nikah), but about making "sure that all citizens have access to the same kinds of public benefits".

Scott Siraj al-Haqq Kugle, a professor of Islamic Studies at [[Emory University]], has argued for a different interpretation of the Lot narrative focusing not on the sexual act but on the infidelity of the tribe and their rejection of Lot's Prophethood. According to Kugle, "where the Qur'an treats same-sex acts, it condemns them only so far as they are exploitive or violent." More generally, Kugle notes that the Quran refers to four different levels of personality. One level is "genetic inheritance." The Qur'an refers to this level as one's "physical stamp" that "determines one's temperamental nature" including one's sexuality. On the basis of this reading of the Qur'an, Kugle asserts that homosexuality is "caused by divine will", so "homosexuals have no rational choice in their internal disposition to be attracted to same-sex mates."<ref name=kugle2010>{{cite book|last=Kugle|first=Scott|title=Homosexuality in Islam|year=2010|publisher=Oneworld Publications|location=Oxford, England}}</ref>{{rp|42–46}}  Kugle argues that if the classical commentators had seen "sexual orientation as an integral aspect of human personality", they would have read the narrative of Lot and his tribe "as addressing male rape of men in particular" and not as "addressing homosexuality in general".<ref name=kugle2010/>{{rp|54}}  Kugle furthermore reads the Qur'an as holding "a positive assessment of diversity". Under this reading, Islam can be described as "a religion that positively assesses diversity in creation and in human societies", allowing gay and lesbian Muslims to view homosexuality as representing the "natural diversity in sexuality in human societies."<ref name=kugle>{{cite book|chapter-url=http://othersheepexecsite.com/Other_Sheep_Resource_Sexuality_Diversity_and_Ethics_in_the_Agenda_of_Progressive_Muslims_by_Scott_Siraj_al_Haqq_Kugle.pdf|author=Scott Siraj al-Haqq Kugle|chapter=Sexuality, diversity and ethics in the agenda of progressive Muslims|title=Progressive Muslims: On Justice, Gender, and Pluralism|editor=Omid Safi|publisher=Oneworld Publications|date=2003|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180526190939/http://othersheepexecsite.com/Other_Sheep_Resource_Sexuality_Diversity_and_Ethics_in_the_Agenda_of_Progressive_Muslims_by_Scott_Siraj_al_Haqq_Kugle.pdf|archive-date=26 May 2018}}</ref> A critique of Kugle's approach, interpretations and conclusions was published in 2016 by Mobeen Vaid.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://muslimmatters.org/2016/07/11/can-islam-accommodate-homosexual-acts-quranic-revisionism-and-the-case-of-scott-kugle/|title=Can Islam Accommodate Homosexual Acts? Quranic Revisionism and the Case of Scott Kugle|publisher=MuslimMatters|last1=Vaid|first1=Mobeen|date=11 July 2016|access-date=31 July 2017|archive-date=31 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170731162539/http://muslimmatters.org/2016/07/11/can-islam-accommodate-homosexual-acts-quranic-revisionism-and-the-case-of-scott-kugle/|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2018, Junaid Jahangir and Hussein Abdullatif published their own critique of Vaid's criticisms against Kugle.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Jahangir |first=Junaid |last2=Abdullatif |first2=Hussein |date=2018 |title=Homosexuality: the emerging new battleground in Islam |url=https://roam.macewan.ca/items/953b6672-aa0d-473f-938b-6bc9b3bfc740 |journal=Iran Namag |language=en |volume=3 |issue=1}}</ref>

In a 2012 book, Aisha Geissinger<ref>{{cite web |url=https://carleton.ca/religion/people/aisha-geissinger/ |title=Aisha Geissinger |website=Carleton University |access-date=April 7, 2021 |archive-date=April 19, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419190200/https://carleton.ca/religion/people/aisha-geissinger/ |url-status=live }}</ref> writes that there are "apparently irreconcilable Muslim standpoints on same-sex desires and acts", all of which claim "interpretative authenticity". One of these standpoints results from "queer-friendly" interpretations of the Lot story and the Quran. The Lot story is interpreted as condemning "rape and inhospitality rather than today's consensual same-sex relationships."<ref>Aisha Geissinger, "Islam and Discourses of Same-Sex Desire" in ''Queer Religion, Volume 1'', eds., Donald L. Boisvert and Jay Emerson Johnson (ABC-CLIO, 2012), 70. 83.</ref>

In their book ''Islamic Law and Muslim Same-Sex Unions'', [[Junaid Jahangir]] and Hussein Abdullatif argue that interpretations which view the Quranic narrative of the people of Lot and the derived classical notion of ''liwat'' as applying to same-sex relationships reflect the sociocultural norms and medical knowledge of societies that produced those interpretations. They further argue that the notion of ''liwat'' is compatible with the Quranic narrative, but not with the contemporary understanding of same-sex relationships based on love and shared responsibilities.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Sabine Exner|title=Review of Junaid Jahangir & Hussein Abdullatif's ''Islamic Law and Muslim Same-Sex Unions''|journal=Religion and Gender|volume=8|number=1|year=2018|pages=126–128|url=https://www.academia.edu/37888498|access-date=2019-04-05|archive-date=2022-06-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220605064906/https://www.academia.edu/37888498|url-status=live}}</ref>

In his 2010 article ''Sexuality and Islam'', Abdessamad Dialmy addressed "sexual norms defined by the sacred texts (Koran and Sunna)." He wrote that "sexual standards in Islam are paradoxical." The sacred texts "allow and actually are an enticement to the exercise of sexuality."  However, they also "discriminate ... between heterosexuality and homosexuality." Islam's paradoxical standards result in "the current back and forth swing of sexual practices between repression and openness." Dialmy sees a solution to this back and forth swing by a "reinterpretation of repressive holy texts."<ref name="dialmy">{{cite journal |last1=Dialmy |first1=Abdessamad |title=Sexuality and Islam |journal=The European Journal of Contraception & Reproductive Health Care |date=13 May 2010 |volume=15 |issue=3 |pages=160–168 |doi=10.3109/13625181003793339|pmid=20441406 |s2cid=1099061 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.merip.org/author/abdessamad-dialmy|title=Abdessamad Dialmy|publisher=Merip|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120524024513/https://merip.org/author/abdessamad-dialmy/|archive-date=24 May 2012}}</ref>

==Modern laws in Muslim-majority countries {{anchor|Homosexuality_laws_in_majority-Muslim_countries}}==
{{Further|LGBT rights by country or territory}}

[[File:World laws pertaining to homosexual relationships and expression.svg|thumb|280px|Same-sex intercourse illegal: {{legend|#800000|[[Capital punishment|Death penalty]]}}{{legend|#cc6633|Death penalty on books but not applied}}
{{legend|#e73e21|Up to [[life in prison]]}}{{legend|#ec8028|Imprisonment}} {{legend|#f9dc36|Unenforced penalty}}]]

===Criminalization===
{{further|Criminalization of homosexuality}}

According to the [[International Lesbian and Gay Association]] (ILGA) seven countries retain capital punishment for homosexual behavior: [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Yemen]], [[Iran]], [[Afghanistan]], [[Mauritania]], northern [[Nigeria]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ilga.org/news_results.asp?LanguageID=1&FileID=1111&ZoneID=7&FileCategory=50 |title=7 countries still put people to death for same-sex acts |publisher=ILGA |access-date=24 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091029185853/http://www.ilga.org/news_results.asp?LanguageID=1&FileID=1111&ZoneID=7&FileCategory=50 |archive-date=29 October 2009 }}</ref> and the [[United Arab Emirates]].<ref name="United Arab Emirates">{{cite web|url=http://arc-international.net/global-advocacy/universal-periodic-review/u/united-arab-emirates|access-date=27 October 2015|title=and the United Arab Emirates|quote=Facts as drug trafficking, homosexual behaviour, and apostasy are liable to capital punishment.|archive-date=23 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923091519/http://arc-international.net/global-advocacy/universal-periodic-review/u/united-arab-emirates/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="arc.com">{{cite web |last=Mathews |first=Kevin |date=November 21, 2013 |title=Man Accused of "Gay Handshake" Stands Trial in Dubai |url=http://www.care2.com/causes/man-accused-of-gay-handshake-stands-trial-in-dubai.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151030104723/http://www.care2.com/causes/man-accused-of-gay-handshake-stands-trial-in-dubai.html |archive-date=30 October 2015 |access-date=27 October 2015}}</ref> [[Afghanistan]] also has the death penalty for homosexuality since the [[2021 Taliban offensive|2021 Taliban takeover]].<ref name="auto"/> In [[Qatar]], [[Algeria]], [[Uzbekistan]], and the [[Maldives]], homosexuality is punished with time in prison or a fine. This has led to controversy regarding Qatar, which hosted the [[2022 FIFA World Cup]]. In 2010, human rights groups questioned the awarding of hosting rights to Qatar, due to concerns that gay football fans may be jailed. In response, [[Sepp Blatter]], head of [[FIFA]], joked that they would have to "refrain from sexual activity" while in Qatar. He later withdrew the remarks after condemnation from rights groups.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/9297497.stm|title=Fifa boss Sepp Blatter sorry for Qatar 'gay' remarks|publisher=BBC|date=17 December 2010|access-date=14 January 2011|archive-date=25 January 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110125073711/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/9297497.stm|url-status=live}}</ref>

While [[Egypt]] does not have a de jure law explicitly criminalizing homosexual behavior, gay men (or people suspected of being gay) have been prosecuted under general public morality laws. (See [[Cairo 52]].) "Sexual relations between consenting adult persons of the same sex in private are not prohibited as such. However, the Law on the Combating of Prostitution, and the law against debauchery have been used to imprison gay men in recent years."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ilga.org/downloads/02_ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2016_ENG_WEB_150516.pdf|title=''State Sponsored Homophobia 2016'' (ILGA, May 2016), 62.|work=ILGA.org|access-date=5 April 2017|archive-date=2 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170902183618/http://ilga.org/downloads/02_ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2016_ENG_WEB_150516.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2019, an Egyptian TV host was sentenced to one year in prison on charges of promoting debauchery after interviewing a gay man.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/01/25/egypts-lgbt-crackdown-expands-stifle-journalists|title=Egypt's LGBT Crackdown Expands to Stifle Journalists|date=25 January 2019|website=Human Rights Watch|language=en|access-date=9 November 2019|archive-date=30 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190730051030/https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/01/25/egypts-lgbt-crackdown-expands-stifle-journalists|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/322085/Egypt/Politics-/Egyptian-court-sentences-TV-presenter-ElGheity-to-.aspx|title=Egyptian court sentences TV presenter El-Gheity to 1 year in 'promoting debauchery on air' case|date=20 January 2019|access-date=19 December 2024|first=El-Sayed|last=Gamal El-Din|website=[[Ahram Online]]}}</ref>

The Sunni [[Islamism|Islamist]] [[militant]] group and [[Salafi jihadism|Salafi-jihadist]] [[terrorist organization]] [[Islamic State|ISIL/ISIS/IS/Daesh]], which [[ISIL territorial claims|invaded and claimed]] parts of [[Iraq]] and [[Syria]] between 2014 and 2017, [[Persecution of gay and bisexual men by ISIL|enacted the political and religious persecution of LGBT people]] and decreed capital punishment for them.<ref>{{cite web |title=Anti-Gay Rhetoric in English-Language ISIS and Al Qaeda Magazines |publisher=[[Anti-Defamation League]] |date=15 June 2016 |url=https://www.adl.org/blog/anti-gay-rhetoric-in-english-language-isis-and-al-qaeda-magazines |access-date=6 June 2022 |archive-date=21 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220521195251/https://www.adl.org/blog/anti-gay-rhetoric-in-english-language-isis-and-al-qaeda-magazines |url-status=live }}<br />{{bullet}}{{cite web |title=ISIS's Persecution of Gay People |website=[[Counter Extremism Project]] |date=May 2017 |url=https://www.counterextremism.com/content/isis-persecution-gay-people |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023103356/https://www.counterextremism.com/content/isis-persecution-gay-people |archive-date=23 October 2020 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Tharoor 2016">{{cite news |last=Tharoor |first=Ishaan |title=The Islamic State's shocking war on homosexuals |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/06/13/the-islamic-states-shocking-war-on-homosexuals/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201217131006/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/06/13/the-islamic-states-shocking-war-on-homosexuals/ |archive-date=17 December 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=What ISIS Is Saying About the Orlando Shooter |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/what-isis-is-saying-about-the-orlando-shooter/ |website=Vice |date=15 June 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108141201/https://www.vice.com/en/article/vdbke8/what-isis-is-saying-about-the-orlando-shooter |archive-date=8 November 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=ISIS targets gay people using Facebook and phone contacts |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/2184492/isis-targets-gay-people-using-facebook-and-phone-contacts-iraqi-refugee-tells-un/ |website=Global News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201219033530/https://globalnews.ca/news/2184492/isis-targets-gay-people-using-facebook-and-phone-contacts-iraqi-refugee-tells-un/ |archive-date=19 December 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Inside look at ISIS' brutal persecution of gays |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/isis-persecution-gay-men-murder-lgbt-muslim-society/ |website=CBS News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220311111716/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/isis-persecution-gay-men-murder-lgbt-muslim-society/ |archive-date=11 March 2022 |date=2 December 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Damon |first=Arwa |last2=Bilginsoy |first2=Zeynep |date=6 March 2015 |title=Amid brazen, deadly attacks, gay Syrians tell of fear of ISIS persecution |url=https://www.cnn.com/2015/03/05/middleeast/isis-lgbt-persecution/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220311112157/https://www.cnn.com/2015/03/05/middleeast/isis-lgbt-persecution/ |archive-date=11 March 2022 |website=CNN}}</ref> ISIL/ISIS/IS/Daesh terrorists have executed more than two dozen men and women for suspected homosexual activity, including several thrown off the top of buildings in highly publicized executions.<ref name="Tharoor 2016"/>

In [[India]], which has the third-largest [[Muslim]] population in the world, and where Islam is the largest minority religion, the largest Islamic seminary ([[Darul Uloom Deoband]]) has vehemently opposed recent government moves<ref>{{cite news |author = Jeremy Page | date= 29 June 2009 |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article6597715.ece |title= India to repeal anti-gay law as second Gay Pride is held |work=The Times Online |archive-date=2009-10-18 | df=dmy |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091018073029/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article6597715.ece |url-status=dead }}</ref> to abrogate and liberalize laws from the [[British Raj|colonial era]] that banned homosexuality.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/After-Deoband-other-Muslim-leaders-condemn-homosexuality/articleshow/4723843.cms|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524080230/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2009-07-01/india/28209224_1_muslim-leaders-controversial-section-maulana-jalaluddin-omari|url-status=live|archive-date=24 May 2011|newspaper=[[The Times of India]]|title=After Deoband, other Muslim leaders condemn homosexuality|date=1 July 2009}}</ref> As of September 2018, homosexuality is no longer a criminal act in India, and most of the religious groups withdrew their opposing claims against it in the Supreme Court.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/06/world/asia/india-gay-sex-377.html|title=India Gay Sex Ban Is Struck Down. 'Indefensible,' Court Says.|first1=Jeffrey|last1=Gettleman|first2=Kai|last2=Schultz|first3=Suhasini|last3=Raj|display-authors=1|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=6 September 2018|access-date=6 September 2018|archive-date=6 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180906125004/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/06/world/asia/india-gay-sex-377.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In [[Iraq]], homosexuality is allowed by the government, but terrorist groups often carry out illegal executions of gay people. [[Saddam Hussein]] was "unbothered by sexual mores". Ali Hili reports that "since the 2003 invasion more than 700 people have been killed because of their sexuality." He calls Iraq the "most dangerous place in the world for sexual minorities."<ref name="economist.com"/>

In [[Jordan]], where homosexuality is legal, "gay hangouts have been raided or closed on bogus charges, such as serving alcohol illegally."<ref name="economist.com"/> Despite this legality, social attitudes towards homosexuality are still hostile and hateful.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://fanack.com/family-law/lgbtq-jordan-still-stigmatized/|title=In Jordan, the LGBTQ+ Community Is Not Criminalized But Still Stigmatized|website=Fanack.com|date=16 February 2019|language=en-US|access-date=9 November 2019|archive-date=23 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200823182119/https://fanack.com/family-law/lgbtq-jordan-still-stigmatized/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In [[Pakistan]], [[Law of Pakistan|its law]] is a mixture of both British colonial law as well as Islamic law, both which prescribe criminal penalties for same-sex sexual acts. The [[Pakistan Penal Code]] of 1860, originally developed [[History of Pakistan#British colonization, conquest, and cultural heritage|under colonial rule]], punishes sodomy with a possible prison sentence. Yet, the more likely situation for gay and bisexual men is sporadic police fines, and jail sentences.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pakistani.org/pakistan/legislation/1860/actXLVof1860.html |title=Pakistan Penal Code (Act XLV of 1860) |publisher=Pakistani.org |access-date=11 February 2014 |archive-date=9 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180909210959/http://www.pakistani.org/pakistan/legislation/1860/actXLVof1860.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In [[Bangladesh]], homosexual acts are illegal and punishable according to section 377. In 2009 and 2013, the Bangladeshi Parliament refused to overturn Section 377.<ref>{{cite news|last=Pawar|first=Yogesh|title=Bangladesh Refuses to Abolish Criminalisation of Same-Sex Ties: In Denial about its 4.5 Million-Strong LGBT Community, Dhaka Shoots Down the United Nations Human Rights Commission Recommendations|date=2013|newspaper=[[Daily News and Analysis]]|url=https://www.dnaindia.com/world/report-bangladesh-refuses-to-abolish-criminalisation-of-consensual-same-sex-ties-1899219}}</ref>

In [[Saudi Arabia]], the maximum punishment for homosexual acts is public execution by beheading.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/michelangelo-signorile/saudi-arabia-beheads-gays_b_6354636.html|title=Saudi Arabia Beheads Gays, but Marco Rubio Has No Problem With You Traveling There|first=Michelangelo|last=Signorile|date=19 December 2014|work=[[HuffPost]]|access-date=5 April 2017|archive-date=14 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170414125013/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michelangelo-signorile/saudi-arabia-beheads-gays_b_6354636.html|url-status=live}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=February 2025}}

In [[Malaysia]], homosexual acts are illegal and punishable with jail, fine, deportation, whipping or chemical castration. In October 2018, [[Prime Minister of Malaysia|Prime Minister]] [[Mahathir Mohamad]] stated that Malaysia would not "copy" Western nations' approach towards LGBT rights, indicating that these countries were exhibiting a disregard for the institutions of the traditional family and marriage, as the value system in Malaysia is good.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/2170274/mahathir-mohamad-claims-lgbt-rights-are-western-values-will|title=Mahathir claims LGBT rights are 'Western values' not fit for Malaysia|date=26 October 2018|website=South China Morning Post|language=en|access-date=15 May 2019|archive-date=6 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190606163319/https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/2170274/mahathir-mohamad-claims-lgbt-rights-are-western-values-will|url-status=live}}</ref> In May 2019, in response to the warning of [[George Clooney]] about intending to impose death penalty for homosexuals like Brunei, the Deputy Foreign Minister [[Marzuki Yahya]] pointed out that Malaysia does not kill gay people, and will not resort to killing sexual minorities. He also said, although such lifestyles deviate from Islam, the government would not impose such a punishment on the group.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2019/05/14/lgbt-against-islam-but-we-dont-kill-gay-people-deputy-minister-tells-george/1752892|title=LGBT culture against Islamic principles but Malaysia doesn't kill gays, deputy minister tells George Clooney {{!}} Malay Mail|last=Palansamy|first=Yiswaree|website=www.malaymail.com|date=14 May 2019|language=en|access-date=15 May 2019|archive-date=12 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190612191930/https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2019/05/14/lgbt-against-islam-but-we-dont-kill-gay-people-deputy-minister-tells-george/1752892|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Indonesia]] does not have a [[sodomy law]] and does not currently criminalize private, non-commercial homosexual acts among consenting adults, except in [[Aceh]] province where homosexuality is illegal for Muslims under Islamic Sharia law, and punishable by flogging.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2021-01-28 |title=LGBT rights: Indonesia's Aceh flogs two men for having sex |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-55846699 |access-date=2023-07-19 |archive-date=2023-07-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230719082419/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-55846699 |url-status=live }}</ref> While it does not criminalise homosexuality, the country does not recognise [[same-sex marriage]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Indonesia's LGBTQ community fears legal crackdown – DW – 06/02/2022 |url=https://www.dw.com/en/indonesia-lgbtq-fears-crackdown-under-legal-reforms/a-62010297 |access-date=2023-07-19 |website=dw.com |language=en |archive-date=2023-07-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230719082419/https://www.dw.com/en/indonesia-lgbtq-fears-crackdown-under-legal-reforms/a-62010297 |url-status=live }}</ref> In July 2015, the [[Ministry of Religious Affairs (Indonesia)|Minister of Religious Affairs]] stated that it is difficult in Indonesia to legalize Gay Marriage, because strongly held religious norms speak strongly against it.<ref name="JP Gay Marriage">{{cite news | title = Difficult for Indonesia to legalize gay marriage: Minister | location = Jakarta | date = 2 July 2015 | newspaper = The Jakarta Post | url = http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/07/02/difficult-indonesia-legalize-gay-marriage-minister.html | access-date = 9 August 2019 | archive-date = 17 November 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181117073932/http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/07/02/difficult-indonesia-legalize-gay-marriage-minister.html | url-status = live }}</ref> [[People's Representative Council]] (DPR) has dismissed the suggestion that the death penalty would be introduced for same-sex acts, citing that it is quite impossible to implement that policy by the government of Indonesia.<ref name="Tr1">{{cite news | title = Fatwa MUI Hukum Mati Kaum Homoseksual Dinilai Sulit Diterapkan | date = 18 March 2015 | newspaper = Tribunnews | url = http://www.tribunnews.com/nasional/2015/03/18/fatwa-mui-hukuman-mati-kaum-homoseksual-dinilai-sulit-diterapkan | language = id | access-date = 7 April 2015 | archive-date = 14 March 2016 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160314143824/http://www.tribunnews.com/nasional/2015/03/18/fatwa-mui-hukuman-mati-kaum-homoseksual-dinilai-sulit-diterapkan | url-status = live }}</ref>

In [[Turkey]], homosexuality is legal and there have been several attempts to enact constitutional guarantees.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Solaker |first=Gulsen |date=2013-11-18 |title=Hopes fade for a new Turkish constitution |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-constitution-idUSBRE9AH0OV20131118 |work=[[Reuters]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Aile Bakanlığı Mevzuatlarının LGBTİ'leri Kapsaması İçin Kanun Teklifi |url=https://bianet.org/haber/aile-bakanligi-mevzuatlarinin-lgbti-leri-kapsamasi-icin-kanun-teklifi-162234 |access-date=2025-04-30 |website=bianet.org |language=tr}}</ref> They however may face discrimination in public employment and the government does not take appropriate steps to improve civil rights. LGBTQ+ rights associations are allowed to operate legally, and many mainstream politicians advocate for LGBTQ+ rights.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Dickson |first=Anna |last2=Mills |first2=Claire |last3=Curtis |first3=John |last4=Loft |first4=Philip |last5=Rajendralal |first5=Reshma |last6=Robinson |first6=Timothy |date=2025-04-28 |title=LGBT+ rights and issues in the Middle East |url=https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9457/ |journal=House of Commons Library |language=en-GB}}</ref> Despite the worsening situation with democratic backsliding, such as the prohibition of [[Pride parade|pride parades]] in 2019, the public acceptance of homosexuality continues to grow steadily.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Parsons |first=Vic |date=2020-03-24 |title=LGBT+ acceptance in Turkey, where a majority of the population is Muslim, is at an all-time high |url=https://www.thepinknews.com/2020/03/24/turkey-lgbt-acceptance-muslim-islam-kadir-has-university-istanbul-rights/ |access-date=2025-04-30 |website=PinkNews {{!}} Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news {{!}} LGBTQ+ news |language=en-US}}</ref>

As the latest addition in the list of criminalizing Muslim countries, [[Brunei]]'s has implemented penalty for homosexuals within ''Sharia Penal Code'' in stages since 2014. It prescribes death by stoning as punishment for sex between men,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/mar/28/brunei-brings-in-death-by-stoning-as-punishment-for-gay-sex|title=Brunei introduces death by stoning as punishment for gay sex |first=Hannah |last=Ellis-Petersen |department=South-east Asia|date=28 March 2019|work=The Guardian|access-date=28 March 2019|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077|archive-date=14 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210314174740/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/mar/28/brunei-brings-in-death-by-stoning-as-punishment-for-gay-sex|url-status=live}}</ref> and sex between women is punishable by [[caning]] or imprisonment. The sultanate currently has a moratorium in effect on death penalty.<ref name="CNN-20190505">{{cite web |last=Westcott |first=Ben |last2=Wright |first2=Rebecca |date=6 May 2019 |title=Brunei backs down on gay sex death penalty after international backlash |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2019/05/05/asia/brunei-lgbt-death-penalty-intl/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190608034231/https://edition.cnn.com/2019/05/05/asia/brunei-lgbt-death-penalty-intl/index.html |archive-date=8 June 2019 |access-date=6 May 2019 |publisher=CNN}}</ref><ref name="April32019">{{cite news|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-04-03/brunei-introduces-sharia-law-lgbt-whipping-stoning-to-death/10959618|title=Brunei enacts Islamic laws to punish gay sex with stoning to death — here's what you need to know|last1=Robertson|first1=Holly|date=3 April 2019|publisher=ABC|access-date=2019-08-02|archive-date=2019-06-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190625235340/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-04-03/brunei-introduces-sharia-law-lgbt-whipping-stoning-to-death/10959618|url-status=live}}</ref>

====Death penalty====
{{Further|Capital punishment for homosexuality}}

[[File:Death Penalty for Consensual Homosexual Activity.png|thumb|300px|right|{{legend|#841B2D|Law explicitly provides for death penalty for sex between consenting adults of the same sex.}}{{legend|#FF8C00|Law is unclear if death penalty is a legally possible punishment for same-sex acts, although such acts are criminalized.{{efn|name="legal uncertainty"|text=The ILGA, in its 2020 report and its 2023 database, state that there five UN-member countries where the status of the death penalty as a punishment for same-sex sexual conduct is uncertain. This may be because legal experts or scholars dispute the effect of legal provisions, or because the laws relied upon to potentially sanction the death penalty relate to sexual behaviours outside marriage, with applicability to homosexual relations so far only theoretical. The jurisdictions in this category are: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Qatar, Somalia (including Somaliland) and the United Arab Emirates.<ref name="ilga frameworks">{{Citation |title=Legal Frameworks: Criminalisation of consensual same-sex sexual acts |url=https://database.ilga.org/criminalisation-consensual-same-sex-sexual-acts |at=Methodology – Section 9. Death Penalty: Issues of legal certainty |access-date=16 October 2023|publisher=[[International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association|ILGA]] |quote=...{{nbsp}}'full legal certainty' is understood as the absence of disputes about whether the death penalty can be legally imposed for consensual same-sex sexual conduct. This legal certainty may be derived from the existence of written, codified laws unequivocally prescribing the death penalty for same-sex conduct{{nbsp}}... Conversely, the lack of clear provisions mandating the death penalty for consensual same-sex sexual acts, the existence of disputes between scholars and experts with regard to the interpretation of ambiguous provisions, and the need for judicial interpretation of certain 'generic' crimes to encompass consensual same-sex sexual acts has led ILGA World to classify the remaining five UN Member States{{nbsp}}... as jurisdictions where there is no full legal certainty. ... It bears mentioning that in all five states{{nbsp}}... there is full certainty that the alternative in default of the death penalty is always a provision of law criminalising consensual same-sex sexual acts with corporal punishment, imprisonment and/or a fine. Therefore, this uncertainty does not hinge on 'criminalisation vs non-criminalisation', but rather on the severity of the penalties imposed.}}</ref><ref name=ILGA2020>{{cite report|author1-first=Lucas Ramón |author1-last=Mendos |author2=Kellyn Botha|author3=Rafael Carrano Lelis|author4=Enrique López de la Peña|author5=Ilia Savelev|author6=Daron Tan |display-authors=1|title=State-Sponsored Homophobia Report: Global Legislation Overview Update, 2020 |url= https://ilga.org/downloads/ILGA_World_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_report_global_legislation_overview_update_December_2020.pdf |publisher=[[International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association|ILGA]] |location=Geneva |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201215114401/https://ilga.org/downloads/ILGA_World_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_report_global_legislation_overview_update_December_2020.pdf |archive-date=15 December 2020 |language=en |date=14 December 2020|edition=Updated}}</ref>{{rp|25}}}}}}]]

All nations currently having capital punishment as a potential penalty for homosexual activity are [[Muslim world|Muslim-majority countries]] and base those laws on interpretations of Islamic teachings, with the exception of [[Uganda]].<ref name=Criminalisation>{{Cite web |date=March 2023 |title=Criminalisation of Same-Sex Sexual Acts |url=https://database.ilga.org/criminalisation-consensual-same-sex-sexual-acts |publisher=[[International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association]]}}</ref><ref name="Justification">{{Cite web |date=March 2021 |title=Shari'a and LGBTI Persons: The Use of Shari'a as Religious Justification for Capital Punishment Against LGBTI Persons |url=https://www.uscirf.gov/sites/default/files/2021-03/2021%20Factsheet%20-%20Sharia%20and%20LGBTI.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230129201200/https://www.uscirf.gov/sites/default/files/2021-03/2021%20Factsheet%20-%20Sharia%20and%20LGBTI.pdf |archive-date=2023-01-29 |access-date=2023-04-10 |publisher=[[United States Commission on International Religious Freedom]] |place=Washington D.C. |page=2}}</ref> In 2020, the [[International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association]] (ILGA) released its most recent ''State Sponsored Homophobia Report''. The report found that eleven countries or regions impose the death penalty for "same-sex sexual acts" with reference to sharia-based laws. In Iran, according to article 129 and 131 there are up to 100 lashes of whip first three times and fourth time death penalty for lesbians.<ref>{{citation |last1=Zar Rokh |first1=Ehsan |title=Case Study in Iranian Criminal System |date=18 March 2008 |ssrn=1108208 |doi=10.2139/ssrn.1108208 |url=https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/7863/3/MPRA_paper_7863.pdf |access-date=7 March 2022 |archive-date=16 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316042119/https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/7863/3/MPRA_paper_7863.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> The death penalty is implemented nationwide in [[Brunei]], [[Iran]], [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Afghanistan]], [[Yemen]], northern [[Nigeria]], [[Mauritania]], [[the United Arab Emirates]], and [[Somalia]]. This punishment is also allowed by the law but not implemented in [[Qatar]], and [[Pakistan]]; and was back then implemented through non-state courts by [[ISIS]] in parts of [[Iraq]] and [[Syria]] (now no longer existing).<ref>{{cite book |url=http://ilga.org/downloads/02_ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2016_ENG_WEB_150516.pdf |last1=Carroll |first1=Aengus |title=State Sponsored Homophobia 2016: A world survey of sexual orientation laws: criminalisation, protection and recognition |publisher=International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association |date=May 2016 |page=37 |access-date=2016-10-09 |archive-date=2017-09-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170902183618/http://ilga.org/downloads/02_ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2016_ENG_WEB_150516.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="CNN-20190505"/>

Due to Brunei's law dictating that gay sex be punishable by stoning, many of its targeted citizens fled to Canada in hopes of finding refuge. The law is also set to impose the same punishment for adultery among heterosexual couples. Despite pushback from citizens in the LGBTQ+ community, Brunei prime minister's office produced a statement explaining Brunei's intention for carrying through with the law. It has been suggested that this is part of a plan to separate Brunei from the western world and towards a Muslim one.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/02/asia/brunei-lgbt-inhumane-stoning-laws-intl/index.html|title=Brunei's LGBT community flees 'inhumane' new stoning laws|author=Rebecca Wright and Alexandra Field|website=CNN|date=2 April 2019|access-date=6 November 2019|archive-date=11 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191111184344/https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/02/asia/brunei-lgbt-inhumane-stoning-laws-intl/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the [[Chechen Republic]], a part of the [[Russian Federation]], [[Ramzan Kadyrov]] has [[LGBT rights in Chechnya|actively discriminated against homosexual individuals]] and presided over a campaign of arbitrary detention and extrajudicial killing.<ref name="KramerNYT">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/01/world/europe/chechen-authorities-arresting-and-killing-gay-men-russian-paper-says.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220103/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/01/world/europe/chechen-authorities-arresting-and-killing-gay-men-russian-paper-says.html |archive-date=2022-01-03 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Chechen Authorities Arresting and Killing Gay Men, Russian Paper Says|first=Andrew E.|last=Kramer|newspaper=The New York Times|date=1 April 2017|access-date=15 April 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
It has been suggested that "to counteract popular support for an Islamist insurgency that erupted after the Soviet breakup, President [[Vladimir V. Putin]] of Russia has granted wide latitude to Kadyrov to co-opt elements of the Islamist agenda, including an intolerance of gays."<ref>{{cite news |title=Russians Protesting Abuse of Gay Men in Chechnya Are Detained |author=Kramer, Andrew E. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/01/world/europe/russia-gay-rights-chechnya.html?_r=0 |newspaper=The New York Times |date=1 May 2017 |access-date=31 May 2017 |archive-date=4 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904060839/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/01/world/europe/russia-gay-rights-chechnya.html?_r=0 |url-status=live }}</ref> Reports of the discrimination in Chechnya have in turn been used to stoke Islamophobia, racist, and anti-Russia rhetoric. [[Jessica Stern]], executive director of [[OutRight Action International]], has criticized this bigotry, noting: "Using a violent attack on men accused of being gay to legitimize islamophobia is dangerous and misleading. It negates the experiences of queer muslims and essentializes all muslims as homophobic. We cannot permit this tragedy to be co-opted by ethno-nationalists to perpetuate anti-Muslim or anti-Russian sentiment.  The people and their government are never the same."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lgbtweekly.com/2017/04/09/russian-lgbt-network-evacuating-at-risk-people-from-chechnya/|title=Russian LGBT Network evacuating 'at risk' people from Chechnya|access-date=16 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180705033300/http://lgbtweekly.com/2017/04/09/russian-lgbt-network-evacuating-at-risk-people-from-chechnya/|archive-date=5 July 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref>

====Minor penalty====
In [[LGBT rights in Algeria|Algeria]], [[LGBT rights in Bangladesh|Bangladesh]], [[LGBT rights in Chad|Chad]], [[LGBT rights in Morocco|Morocco]], [[Aceh]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://palembang.tribunnews.com/2020/02/06/satpol-pp-palembang-ungkap-sering-temukan-pasangan-lgbt-tapi-sulit-ditindak|title=Satpol PP Palembang, Ungkap Sering Temukan Pasangan LGBT, Tapi Sulit Ditindak|access-date=2021-09-17|archive-date=2021-09-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210913151148/https://palembang.tribunnews.com/2020/02/06/satpol-pp-palembang-ungkap-sering-temukan-pasangan-lgbt-tapi-sulit-ditindak|url-status=live}}</ref> [[LGBT rights in the Maldives|Maldives]],<ref name="Maldives Penal Code, s411">{{Cite web|url=https://www.law.upenn.edu/live/files/4203-maldives-penal-code-2014|title=Maldives Penal Code, s411|website=University of Pennsylvania|access-date=7 March 2018|archive-date=26 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161026190552/https://www.law.upenn.edu/live/files/4203-maldives-penal-code-2014|url-status=live}}</ref> [[LGBT rights in Oman|Oman]], [[LGBT rights in Pakistan|Pakistan]],<ref name="auto1">{{cite web|url=http://www.pakistani.org/pakistan/legislation/1860/actXLVof1860.html|title=Pakistan Penal Code (Act XLV of 1860)|publisher=Pakistani|access-date=12 February 2014|archive-date=9 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180909210959/http://www.pakistani.org/pakistan/legislation/1860/actXLVof1860.html|url-status=live}}</ref> [[LGBT rights in Qatar|Qatar]],<ref name="glapn.org">{{cite news|author=Ready, Freda|newspaper=[[The Cornell Daily Sun]]|url=http://www.glapn.org/sodomylaws/world/qatar/qanews05.htm|title=Qatar's Gay Rights Policy Under Scrutiny|date=4 December 2002|access-date=18 May 2016|archive-date=20 August 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080820062524/http://www.glapn.org/sodomylaws/world/qatar/qanews05.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> [[LGBT rights in Syria|Syria]],<ref name="auto3">{{cite web |url=http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/pdfid/4a16a9d92.pdf |title=Syria: Treatment and human rights situation of homosexuals |access-date=20 January 2011 |archive-date=10 January 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110110023009/http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/pdfid/4a16a9d92.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> and [[LGBT rights in Tunisia|Tunisia]], it is illegal, and penalties may be imposed.<ref name="Tpha">{{cite journal|first=Ben|last=Anderson|url=http://www.africanajournal.org/PDF/vol1/vol1_6_Ben%20Douglas.pdf|title=The Politics of Homosexuality in Africa|journal=Africana|year=2007|volume=1|issue=1|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724225700/http://www.africanajournal.org/PDF/vol1/vol1_6_Ben%20Douglas.pdf|archive-date=24 July 2011}}</ref><ref name="ILGA 2013">{{cite web|url=http://old.ilga.org/Statehomophobia/ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2013.pdf |title=State-sponsored Homophobia: A world survey of laws prohibiting same sex activity between consenting adults |last=Ottosson |first=Daniel |date=2013 |publisher=International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) |page=Page 7 |access-date=26 February 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130627221135/http://old.ilga.org//Statehomophobia//ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2013.pdf |archive-date=27 June 2013 }}</ref><ref name="JP1">{{cite news | title = In response to anti-LGBT fatwa, Jokowi urged to abolish laws targeting minorities | date = 18 March 2015 | newspaper = The Jakarta Post | url = http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/18/in-response-anti-lgbt-fatwa-jokowi-urged-abolish-laws-targeting-minorities.html | access-date = 7 April 2015 | archive-date = 22 May 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190522211443/https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/18/in-response-anti-lgbt-fatwa-jokowi-urged-abolish-laws-targeting-minorities.html | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="auto4">{{cite web|title=Indonesia: Situation of sexual minorities, including legislation, treatment by society and authorities, state protection and support services available (2013– June 2015)|url=http://www.refworld.org/docid/55b602fa4.html|publisher=[[Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada]]|access-date=18 May 2016|date=8 July 2015|archive-date=1 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220301185432/https://www.refworld.org/docid/55b602fa4.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In [[Kuwait]], [[Sierra Leone]], [[Turkmenistan]], [[Uzbekistan]], [[homosexual acts between males]] are illegal, but homosexual relations between females are legal.<ref name="JP1" /><ref name="auto5">{{cite web|author1=Lucas Paoli Itaborahy|author2=Jingshu Zhu|url=http://old.ilga.org/Statehomophobia/ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2015.pdf|title=State-sponsored Homophobia – A world survey of laws: Criminalisation, protection and recognition of same-sex love|publisher=International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association|date=May 2014|access-date=25 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150629054502/http://old.ilga.org/Statehomophobia/ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2015.pdf|archive-date=29 June 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Kuwait Law">{{cite web|url=http://ilga.org/ilga/en/countries/KUWAIT/Law|title=Kuwait Law|work=ILGA Asia|date=2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130719003347/http://ilga.org/ilga/en/countries/KUWAIT/Law|archive-date=19 July 2013}}</ref><ref name="Legislationline.org">{{cite web |url=http://www.legislationline.org/download/action/download/id/1712/file/a45cbf3cc66c17f04420786aa164.htm/preview |title=Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan On Enactment of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan |publisher=Legislationline.org |access-date=22 March 2016 |archive-date=18 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170118011906/http://www.legislationline.org/download/action/download/id/1712/file/a45cbf3cc66c17f04420786aa164.htm/preview |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Legalization===
[[File:21. İstanbul Onur Yürüyüşü Gay Pride (58).jpg|250px|thumb|[[Istanbul Pride|Istanbul LGBT Pride parade]] in 2013, [[Taksim Square]], [[Istanbul]], Turkey.]]
[[File:Tirana Gay(P)Ride 2016.jpg|thumb|''Gay Pride'' ride 2016 in [[Tirana]], [[Albania]].]]
Same-sex sexual intercourse is legal in [[Albania]], [[Azerbaijan]], [[Bahrain]], [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]], [[Burkina Faso]], [[Côte d'Ivoire]], [[Djibouti]], [[Guinea-Bissau]], [[Jordan]], [[Kazakhstan]], [[Kosovo]], [[Kyrgyzstan]], [[Mali]], [[Niger]], [[Tajikistan]], [[Turkey]], [[West Bank]] ([[State of Palestine]]), [[Indonesia]] (except [[Aceh]]), and in [[Northern Cyprus]]. In Albania and Turkey, there have been discussions about legalizing same-sex marriage.<ref name="Lowen">{{cite news |last=Lowen |first=Mark |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8177544.stm |title=Albania 'to approve gay marriage' |work=BBC News |date=30 July 2009 |access-date=22 April 2013 |archive-date=5 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190305133216/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8177544.stm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="RoughGuideSEAsia2005">{{cite book|title=Rough Guide to South East Asia|edition=Third|page=[https://archive.org/details/roughguidetosout00vari/page/74 74]|url=https://archive.org/details/roughguidetosout00vari/page/74|publisher=Rough Guides Ltd.|isbn=978-1-84353-437-2|date=August 2005}}</ref> Albania, Northern Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo also protect LGBT people with anti-discrimination laws.

In [[LGBT rights in Lebanon|Lebanon]], courts have ruled that the country's penal code must not be used to target homosexuals, but the law has yet to be changed by parliament.<ref name="timesofisrael.com">{{cite news|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/activists-hail-lebanon-ruling-that-could-protect-gay-rights/|title=Activists hail Lebanon ruling that could protect gay rights|newspaper=The Times of Israel|date=19 July 2018|access-date=6 August 2019|archive-date=31 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181031201836/https://www.timesofisrael.com/activists-hail-lebanon-ruling-that-could-protect-gay-rights/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="metroweekly.com">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.metroweekly.com/2018/07/appeals-court-lebanon-rules-consensual-same-sex-relations-not-unlawful/|title=Appeals court in Lebanon rules consensual same-sex relations are not unlawful|last1=Riley|first1=John|magazine=Metro Weekly|date=23 July 2018|access-date=6 August 2019|archive-date=6 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190806170223/https://www.metroweekly.com/2018/07/appeals-court-lebanon-rules-consensual-same-sex-relations-not-unlawful/|url-status=live}}</ref>

====Same-sex marriage====
In 2007, there was a gay party in the [[Morocco|Moroccan]] town of [[Ksar el-Kebir|al-Qasr al-Kabir]]. Rumours spread that this was a gay marriage and more than 600 people took to the streets, condemning the alleged event and protesting against leniency towards homosexuals.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-05-21 |title=Lawyer: Two Moroccans jailed for homosexuality |url=https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2013/05/21/Lawyer-Two-Moroccans-jailed-for-homosexuality- |access-date=2023-07-19 |website=Al Arabiya English |language=en |archive-date=2023-07-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230719082420/https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2013/05/21/Lawyer-Two-Moroccans-jailed-for-homosexuality- |url-status=live }}</ref> Several persons who attended the party were detained and eventually six Moroccan men were sentenced to between four and ten months in prison for "homosexuality".<ref>{{cite web|date=12 December 2007|url=http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2007/12/12/42868.html|title=Al Arabiya: "Morocco sentences gay 'bride' to jail"|work=alarabiya.net|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160417024322/http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2007/12/12/42868.html|archive-date=17 April 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In [[France]], there was an Islamic same-sex marriage on 18 February 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.france24.com/fr/20120330-france-mariage-homosexuel-musulmans-gay-religion-imam-coran-corps-livre-ludovic-mohamed-zahed|title=FRANCE – Concilier islam et homosexualité, le combat de Ludovic-Mohamed Zahed – France 24|work=France 24|date=30 March 2012|access-date=29 November 2012|archive-date=17 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150217121914/http://www.france24.com/fr/20120330-france-mariage-homosexuel-musulmans-gay-religion-imam-coran-corps-livre-ludovic-mohamed-zahed/|url-status=live}}</ref> In Paris in November 2012 a room in a Buddhist prayer hall was used by gay Muslims and called a "gay-friendly mosque",<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20547335|title=Gay-friendly 'mosque' opens in Paris|last1=Banerji|first1=Robin|date=30 November 2012|access-date=12 February 2013|archive-date=21 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220921070447/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20547335|url-status=live}}</ref> and a French Islamic website is supporting religious same-sex marriage.<ref>{{cite web |title=Homosexual Muslims – HM2F |url=http://www.homosexuels-musulmans.org/gay_muslims.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227151103/http://www.homosexuels-musulmans.org/gay_muslims.html |archive-date=27 December 2016 |access-date=29 November 2012 |work=homosexuels-musulmans.org}}</ref> The French overseas department of [[Mayotte]], which has a majority-Muslim population, legalized same-sex marriage in 2013, along with the rest of France.

The first American Muslim in the United States Congress, [[Keith Ellison]] (D-MN) said in 2010 that all discrimination against [[LGBTQ]] people is wrong.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://minnesotaindependent.com/74635/bradlee-dean-keith-ellison-is-advancing-sharia-law-through-homosexual-agenda|title=Bradlee Dean: Keith Ellison is advancing Sharia law through 'homosexual agenda'|last1=Birkey|first1=Andy|date=1 December 2010|access-date=15 January 2013|publisher=Minnesota Independent|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130114072615/http://minnesotaindependent.com/74635/bradlee-dean-keith-ellison-is-advancing-sharia-law-through-homosexual-agenda|archive-date=14 January 2013}}</ref> He further expressed support for gay marriage stating:<ref>{{cite news|url=http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/06/keith-ellison-minnesota-marriage-amendment-fail.php|title=Keith Ellison: Minnesota Anti-Gay Marriage Amendment Will Fail|last1=Taintor|first1=David|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121211142044/http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/06/keith-ellison-minnesota-marriage-amendment-fail.php |archive-date=11 December 2012|date= 9 June 2012 |access-date=16 January 2013}}</ref>

<blockquote>I believe that the right to marry someone who you please is so fundamental it should not be subject to popular approval any more than we should vote on whether blacks should be allowed to sit in the front of the bus.</blockquote>

In 2014, eight men were jailed for three years by a Cairo court after the circulation of a video of them allegedly taking part in a private wedding ceremony between two men on a boat on the Nile.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Tadros|first1=Sherine|title=Crackdown As Men Jailed Over 'Gay Wedding'|url=http://news.sky.com/story/1367670/crackdown-as-men-jailed-over-gay-wedding|access-date=13 November 2014|date=6 November 2014|archive-date=9 July 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160709223932/http://news.sky.com/story/1367670/crackdown-as-men-jailed-over-gay-wedding|url-status=live}}</ref>

====Transgender====
[[File:Hijra Protest Islamabad.jpg|thumb|200px|A group of ''[[Hijra (South Asia)|hijras]]'' and transgender people protest in [[Islamabad]], [[Pakistan]].]]
In the late 1980s, Mufti [[Muhammad Sayyid Tantawy]] of [[Egypt]] issued a ''[[fatwa]]'' supporting the right for those who fit the description of ''mukhannathun'' and ''mukhannathin'' to have [[sex reassignment surgery]]; [[Ayatollah Khomeini]] of [[Iran]] issued similar ''fatwas'' around the same time.<ref name="TransgenderHealth 2020"/><ref name="Transgenderism 2017"/> Khomeini's initial ''fatwa'' concerned [[intersex]] individuals as well, but he later specified that [[sex reassignment surgery]] was also permissible in the case of transgender individuals.<ref name="TransgenderHealth 2020"/><ref name="Transgenderism 2017"/> Because [[LGBT rights in Iran|homosexuality is illegal in Iran]] but [[transgender|gender transition]] is legal, some gay individuals have been forced to undergo sex reassignment surgery and transition into the opposite sex, regardless of their actual gender identity.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hamedani |first=Ali |date=5 November 2014 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-29832690 |title=The gay people pushed to change their gender |work=[[BBC Persian]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141106224035/https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-29832690 |archive-date=6 November 2014 |access-date=16 July 2021}}</ref>

While Iran has outlawed homosexuality, Iranian thinkers such as Ayatollah Khomeini have allowed for transgender people to change their sex so that they can enter heterosexual relationships.<ref name="TransgenderHealth 2020"/><ref name="Transgenderism 2017"/> Iran is the only<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bagri |first1=Neha Thirani |date=19 April 2017 |title=In Iran, there's only one way to survive as a transgender person |url=https://qz.com/889548/everyone-treated-me-like-a-saint-in-iran-theres-only-one-way-to-survive-as-a-transgender-person/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220121051859/https://qz.com/889548/everyone-treated-me-like-a-saint-in-iran-theres-only-one-way-to-survive-as-a-transgender-person/ |archive-date=21 January 2022 |access-date=24 February 2022 |website=Quartz |language=en}}</ref> Muslim-majority country in the Persian Gulf region that allows transgender people to express themselves by recognizing their self-identified gender and subsidizing reassignment surgery. Despite this, those who do not commit to reassignment surgery are not accepted to be trans.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bagri |first=Neha Thirani |date=19 April 2017 |title=In Iran, there's only one way to survive as a transgender person |url=https://qz.com/889548/everyone-treated-me-like-a-saint-in-iran-theres-only-one-way-to-survive-as-a-transgender-person/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220121051859/https://qz.com/889548/everyone-treated-me-like-a-saint-in-iran-theres-only-one-way-to-survive-as-a-transgender-person/ |archive-date=21 January 2022 |access-date=6 November 2019 |website=Quartz |language=en}}</ref> The government even provides up to half the cost for those needing financial assistance and a sex change is recognized on the birth certificate.<ref>{{cite news |last=Barford |first=Vanessa |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7259057.stm |title=Iran's 'diagnosed transsexuals' |work=BBC News |date=25 February 2008 |access-date=24 July 2010 |archive-date=15 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120315170427/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7259057.stm |url-status=live }}</ref>

In [[Pakistan]], transgender people make up 0.005 percent of the total population.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://dailytimes.com.pk/356130/transgenders-in-pakistan-challenges-and-prospects/|title=Transgenders in Pakistan; challenges and prospects|date=18 February 2019|website=Daily Times|language=en-US|access-date=4 November 2019|archive-date=4 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191104194411/https://dailytimes.com.pk/356130/transgenders-in-pakistan-challenges-and-prospects/|url-status=live}}</ref> Previously, transgender people were isolated from society and had no legal rights or protections. They also suffered discrimination in healthcare services. For example, in 2016 a transgender individual died in a hospital while doctors were trying to decide which ward the patient should be placed in. Transgender people also faced discrimination in finding employment resulting from incorrect identity cards and incongruous legal status. Many were forced into poverty, dancing, singing, and begging on the streets to scrape by. On 26 June 2016, clerics affiliated to the [[Pakistan]]-based organization Tanzeem Ittehad-i-Ummat issued a [[fatwa]] on transgender people where a trans woman (born male) with [[transgender marriage|"visible signs of being a woman" is allowed to marry a man]], and a trans man (born female) with "visible signs of being a man" is allowed to marry a woman. Pakistani transgender persons can also change their (legal) sex. Muslim ritual funerals also apply. Depriving transgender people of their inheritance, humiliating, insulting or teasing them were also declared [[haraam]].<ref>{{cite news |date=27 June 2016 |title=Clerics issue fatwa allowing transgender marriage in Pakistan |publisher=Samaa Web Desk |url=http://www.samaa.tv/pakistan/2016/06/clerics-issue-fatwa-allowing-transgender-marriage-in-pakistan/ |url-status=live |access-date=2 July 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160628213611/http://www.samaa.tv/pakistan/2016/06/clerics-issue-fatwa-allowing-transgender-marriage-in-pakistan/ |archive-date=28 June 2016}}</ref> In May 2018, the Pakistani parliament passed a bill giving transgender individuals the right to choose their legal sex and correct their official documents, such as ID cards, driver licenses, and passports.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/05/09/609700652/pakistan-passes-historic-transgender-rights-bill|title=Pakistan Passes Historic Transgender Rights Bill|newspaper=NPR|date=9 May 2018|language=en|access-date=4 November 2019|last1=Ingber|first1=Sasha|archive-date=18 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200918174933/https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/05/09/609700652/pakistan-passes-historic-transgender-rights-bill|url-status=live}}</ref> Today, transgender people in Pakistan have the right to vote and to search for a job free from discrimination. As of 2018, one transgender woman became a news anchor, and two others were appointed as Supreme Court clerks.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://dailytimes.com.pk/356130/transgenders-in-pakistan-challenges-and-prospects/|title=Transgenders in Pakistan; challenges and prospects|date=18 February 2019|website=Daily Times|language=en-US|access-date=5 November 2019|archive-date=4 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191104194411/https://dailytimes.com.pk/356130/transgenders-in-pakistan-challenges-and-prospects/|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Public opinion among Muslims==
[[File:Nottingham Pride MMB 37 Pride march meets homophobic Muslims.jpg|thumb|Muslim anti-LGBT protesters at an LGBT Pride march in Nottingham, England]]
The Muslim community as a whole, worldwide, has become polarized on the subject of homosexuality. Some Muslims say that "no good Muslim can be gay", and "traditional schools of Islamic law consider homosexuality a grave sin".{{citation needed|date=December 2022}} At the opposite pole, "some Muslims ... are welcoming what they see as an opening within their communities to address anti-gay attitudes."{{citation needed|date=December 2022}} Especially, it is "young Muslims" who are "increasingly speaking out in support of gay rights".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://religionnews.com/2016/06/17/muslim-attitudes-about-lbgt-are-complex-and-far-from-universally-anti-gay/|title=Muslim attitudes about LBGT are complex|work=ReligionNews.com|date=17 June 2016|access-date=5 April 2017|archive-date=30 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170430055008/http://religionnews.com/2016/06/17/muslim-attitudes-about-lbgt-are-complex-and-far-from-universally-anti-gay/|url-status=live}}</ref>

According to the [[Albert Kennedy Trust]], one in four young homeless people identify as LGBT due to their religious parents disowning them. The Trust suggests that the majority of individuals who are homeless due to religious out casting are either Christian or Muslim. Many young adults who come out to their parents are often forced out of the house to find refuge in a more accepting place. This leads many individuals to be homeless or even attempt suicide.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Iqbal |first1=Nomia |last2=Parry |first2=Josh |date=30 July 2019 |title=LGBT people 'being made homeless due to religion' |language=en |work=BBC |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-49150753 |access-date=6 November 2019 |archive-date=13 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191113061106/https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-49150753 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Opinion polls===
In 2013, the [[Pew Research Center]] conducted a study on the global acceptance of homosexuality and found a widespread rejection of homosexuality in many nations that are predominantly Muslim. In some countries, views were becoming more conservative among younger people.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pewglobal.org/2013/06/04/the-global-divide-on-homosexuality/|publisher=[[Pew Research Center]]|title=The Global Divide on Homosexuality|date=4 June 2013|access-date=9 June 2013|archive-date=3 November 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131103034522/http://www.pewglobal.org/2013/06/04/the-global-divide-on-homosexuality/|url-status=live}}</ref>

'''2013 Pew Poll'''
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
! rowspan="2"|Country<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.pewglobal.org/2013/06/04/the-global-divide-on-homosexuality/ |title= The Global Divide on Homosexuality |publisher= [[Pew Research Center]] |date= 4 June 2013 |access-date= 1 November 2020 |archive-date= 3 November 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131103034522/http://www.pewglobal.org/2013/06/04/the-global-divide-on-homosexuality/ |url-status= live }}</ref> !!colspan="3" rowspan="1"|Age group
|-
!| 18–29
!| 30–49
!| 50+
|-
| Lebanon
| 27%
| 17%
| 10%
|-
| Turkey
| 9%
| 7%
| 10%
|-
| Malaysia
| 7%
| 10%
| 11%
|-
| Jordan
| 5%
| 1%
| 1%
|-
| Palestine
| 5%
| 3%
| –
|-
| Senegal
| 5%
| 2%
| 2%
|-
| Indonesia
| 4%
| 2%
| 3%
|-
| Egypt
| 3%
| 2%
| 3%
|-
| Tunisia
| 3%
| 2%
| 1%
|-
| Pakistan
| 2%
| 2%
| 2%
|}

'''2019 Arab Barometer Survey'''
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! Country<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-48703377|title=The Arab world in seven charts: Are Arabs turning their backs on religion?|work=BBC News|date=23 June 2019|access-date=1 November 2020|archive-date=19 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201119175129/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-48703377|url-status=live}}</ref> !! Acceptance of Homosexuality
|-
| Algeria || 26%
|-
| Morocco || 19%
|-
| Sudan || 17%
|-
| Jordan || 7%
|-
| Tunisia || 7%
|-
| Lebanon || 6%
|-
| Palestine territories || 5%
|}

* A 2007 survey of [[British Muslims]] showed that 61% believe homosexuality should be illegal.<ref>{{cite web|title=Living Apart Together: British Muslims and the Paradox of Multiculturalism |last1=Senthilkumaran |first1=Abi |last2=Mirza |first2=Munira |last3=Ja'far |first3=Zein |date=2007 |display-authors=1|url=https://policyexchange.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/living-apart-together-jan-07.pdf|publisher=[[Policy Exchange]]}}</ref> A later [[Gallup (company)|Gallup poll]] in 2009 showed that none of the 500 British Muslims polled believed homosexuality to be "morally acceptable".<ref name="Guardian">{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/may/07/muslims-britain-france-germany-homosexuality | location=London | work=The Guardian | first=Riazat | last=Butt | title=Muslims in Britain have zero tolerance of homosexuality, says poll | date=7 May 2009 | access-date=12 December 2016 | archive-date=30 September 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130930220143/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/may/07/muslims-britain-france-germany-homosexuality | url-status=live }}</ref> In a 2016 [[ICM Research|ICM]] poll of 1,081 British Muslims, 52% of those polled disagreed with the statement "Homosexuality should be legal in Britain" while 18% agreed. In the same poll, 56% of British Muslims polled disagreed with the statement "Gay marriage should be legal in Britain" compared with 20% of the control group and 47% disagreed with the statement "It is acceptable for a homosexual person to be a teacher in a school" compared with 14% of the control group.<ref>{{cite web|title=ICM Muslims Survey for Channel 4|url=https://www.icmunlimited.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Mulims-full-suite-data-plus-topline.pdf|publisher=[[ICM Research]]|date=11 April 2016|access-date=31 March 2017|archive-date=8 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170408085223/http://www.icmunlimited.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Mulims-full-suite-data-plus-topline.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
* According to a 2012 poll, 51% of the [[Turks in Germany]], who account for nearly two thirds of the total [[Islam in Germany|Muslim population in Germany]],<ref>{{cite web|publisher=German [[Federal Ministry of the Interior (Germany)|Federal Ministry of the Interior]]|url=https://www.bmi.bund.de/SharedDocs/downloads/DE/veroeffentlichungen/themen/heimat-integration/dik/langversion_studie_muslim_leben_deutschland.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=2|title= Zusammenfassung 'Muslimisches Leben in Deutschland'|trans-title=Summary: 'Muslim Life in Germany'|p=2|lang=de}}</ref> believed that homosexuality is an illness.<ref>[[:de:Liljeberg Research International|Liljeberg Research International]]: ''[https://d171.keyingress.de/multimedia/document/228.pdf Deutsch-Türkische Lebens- und Wertewelten 2012] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121011112234/https://d171.keyingress.de/multimedia/document/228.pdf |date=11 October 2012 }}'', July/August 2012, p.&nbsp;73</ref> However, a more recent poll from 2015 found that more than 60% of Muslims in Germany support gay marriage.<ref>{{cite web|title=Muslime in Deutschland mit Staat und Gesellschaft eng verbunden|url=https://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/de/presse/pressemitteilungen/pressemitteilung/pid/muslime-in-deutschland-mit-staat-und-gesellschaft-eng-verbunden|publisher=[[Bertelsmann]]|date=8 January 2015|access-date=26 April 2020|archive-date=17 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220217224812/https://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/de/presse/pressemitteilungen/pressemitteilung/pid/muslime-in-deutschland-mit-staat-und-gesellschaft-eng-verbunden|url-status=live}}</ref> A poll in 2017 also found 60% support for gay marriage.<ref>{{cite web|title=Weltanschauliche Vielfalt und Demokratie|url=https://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/fileadmin/files/BSt/Publikationen/GrauePublikationen/Religionsmonitor_Vielfalt_und_Demokratie_7_2019.pdf|publisher=[[Bertelsmann]]|access-date=2020-04-26|archive-date=2022-04-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220423184954/https://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/fileadmin/files/BSt/Publikationen/GrauePublikationen/Religionsmonitor_Vielfalt_und_Demokratie_7_2019.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[American Muslims]] – in line with general public attitudes in the United States – have become much more accepting of homosexuality over recent years. In a 2007 poll conducted by Pew Research Center, only 27% of American Muslims believed that homosexuality should be accepted. In a 2011 poll, that rose to 39%. In a July 2017 poll, Muslims who say homosexuality should be accepted by society clearly outnumber those who say it should be discouraged (52% versus 33%), a level of acceptance similar to [[Protestantism in the United States|American Protestants]] (52% in 2016).<ref>{{cite web|title=U.S. Muslims Concerned About Their Place in Society, but Continue to Believe in the American Dream|url=http://www.pewforum.org/2017/07/26/findings-from-pew-research-centers-2017-survey-of-us-muslims/|publisher=[[Pew Research Center]]|access-date=2 August 2017|date=26 July 2017|archive-date=1 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170801024343/http://www.pewforum.org/2017/07/26/findings-from-pew-research-centers-2017-survey-of-us-muslims/|url-status=live}}</ref> According to research by the [[Public Religion Research Institute]]'s 2017 American Values Atlas, 51% of American Muslims favor same-sex marriage, while 34% are opposed.<ref name="prri">{{cite web |url=https://www.prri.org/research/emerging-consensus-on-lgbt-issues-findings-from-the-2017-american-values-atlas/ |last1=Vandermaas-Peeler |first1=Alex |last2=Cox |first2=Daniel |last3=Fisch-Friedman |first3=Molly |last4=Griffin |first4=Rob |last5=Jones |first5=Robert P.|display-authors=1 |title=Emerging Consensus on LGBT Issues: Findings From the 2017 American Values Atlas |publisher=[[Public Religion Research Institute]] |date=5 January 2018 |access-date=14 December 2019 |archive-date=5 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190505033813/https://www.prri.org/research/emerging-consensus-on-lgbt-issues-findings-from-the-2017-american-values-atlas/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* The 2009 [[Gallup (company)|Gallup poll]] showed that 35% of the [[Islam in France|French Muslims]] believed that homosexuality to be "morally acceptable".<ref name="Guardian"/>
* A 2016 iVOX survey of [[Islam in Belgium|Belgian Muslims]] found that 53% agreed with the statement: "I have no issues with homosexuality." Approximately 30% disagreed with the statement while the rest refused to answer or were unsure.<ref>{{cite book|title=Humo's grote Islam-enquête (1): 'Eén op de vijf moslims heeft begrip voor IS'|date=11 October 2016|publisher=[[HUMO]]|url=http://www.humo.be/site/pdf/Resultaten_Islamenquete_editie_2016.pdf|access-date=29 September 2017|archive-date=15 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215043744/http://www.humo.be/site/pdf/Resultaten_Islamenquete_editie_2016.pdf|url-status=live|p=25}}</ref>
* A 2016 survey of [[Canadian Muslims]] showed that 36% agreed with the statement homosexuality should be accepted by society with 47% young Canadian Muslims (18–34) holding this belief. The survey also stated that 43% of Canadian Muslims agreed with the statement homosexuality should not be accepted by society. The Muslim groups that mostly opposed acceptance of homosexuality by society were the older age group 45 to 59 (55%) and the lowest income group <$30K (56%).<ref name="poll">{{cite web|last1=Grenier|first1=Éric|title=Muslim Canadians increasingly proud of and attached to Canada, survey suggests|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/grenier-muslim-canadians-environics-1.3551591|website=CBC News|access-date=19 April 2017|date=27 April 2016|archive-date=29 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180829063803/https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/grenier-muslim-canadians-environics-1.3551591|url-status=live}}</ref>
* Turkey Muslims: According to the survey conducted by the [[Kadir Has University]] in Istanbul in 2016, 33% of people said that LGBT people should have equal rights. This increased to 45% in 2020. Another survey by Kadir Has University in 2018 found that 55.3% of people would not want a homosexual neighbour. This decreased to 46.5% in 2019.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2020/03/24/turkey-lgbt-acceptance-muslim-islam-kadir-has-university-istanbul-rights/|title=Almost half of people in Turkey think that LGBT+ people should have equal rights, nine percent more than last year, according to a survey|access-date=28 October 2020|archive-date=2 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220202034719/https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2020/03/24/turkey-lgbt-acceptance-muslim-islam-kadir-has-university-istanbul-rights/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://bianet.org/english/lgbti/221831-survey-nearly-half-of-people-think-lgbti-s-should-have-equal-rights|title=Perceptions of Gender Equality|access-date=28 October 2020|archive-date=1 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210101021042/https://bianet.org/english/lgbti/221831-survey-nearly-half-of-people-think-lgbti-s-should-have-equal-rights|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Muslim leaders===
====Sunni====
* In 2017, the Egyptian cleric, Sheikh [[Yusuf al-Qaradawi]] (who has served as chairman of the [[European Council for Fatwa and Research]]) was asked how gay people should be punished. He replied that "there is disagreement", but "the important thing is to treat this act as a crime."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/islams-jihad-against-homosexuals-1465859170|title=Islam's Jihad Against Homosexuals|first=Ayaan Hirsi|last=Ali|newspaper=Wall Street Journal|date=13 June 2016|access-date=5 April 2017|via=www.WSJ.com|archive-date=30 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170130012030/http://www.wsj.com/articles/islams-jihad-against-homosexuals-1465859170|url-status=live}}</ref>

====Shia====
* Iran's current Supreme Leader, Ayatollah [[Ali Khamenei]] has stated that "There is no worst form of moral degeneration than [homosexuality]. ... But it won't stop here. In the future, not sure exactly when, they will legalize incest and even worse."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.outrightinternational.org/content/irans-supreme-leader-says-there-no-worst-form-moral-degeneration-homosexuality|title=Iran's Supreme Leader says "There is no worst form of moral degeneration than homosexuality"|work=Outrightinternational.org|date=27 May 2016|access-date=6 July 2017|archive-date=18 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418210441/https://outrightinternational.org/content/irans-supreme-leader-says-there-no-worst-form-moral-degeneration-homosexuality|url-status=dead}}</ref> According to the conservative news website Khabaronline, [[Mohammad Javad Larijani]], Khamenei's close adviser, stated "In our society, homosexuality is regarded as an illness and malady", and that "Promoting homosexuality is illegal and we have strong laws against it." He added, "It [homosexuality] is considered as a norm in the West and they are forcing us to accept it. We are strongly against this."<ref>{{cite web |last=Dehghan |first=Saeed Kamali |date=14 March 2013 |title=Iranian human rights official describes homosexuality as an illness |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/iran-blog/2013/mar/14/iran-official-homosexuality-illness |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221031160339/https://www.theguardian.com/world/iran-blog/2013/mar/14/iran-official-homosexuality-illness |archive-date=31 October 2022 |access-date=6 July 2017 |work=The Guardian}}</ref>
* Ayatollah [[Ali al-Sistani]] in [[Iraq]] has stated "It is not permissible for a man to look at another man with lust; similarly, it is not permissible for a woman to look at another woman with lust. Homosexuality (Ash-shudhûdh al-jinsi) is haram. Similarly, it is forbidden for a female to engage in a sexual act with another female, i.e. lesbianism."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sistani.org/english/book/46/2068/|work=sistani.org|access-date=6 July 2017|title=A Code of Practice For Muslims in the West|archive-date=7 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170707195659/http://www.sistani.org/english/book/46/2068/|url-status=live}}</ref>

==LGBTQ-related movements within Islam==
===LGBTQ acceptance===
{{Main|Liberalism and progressivism within Islam}}

{{Further|Liberal and progressive Islam in Europe|Liberal and progressive Islam in North America}}

The coming together of "human rights discourses and sexual orientation struggles" has resulted in an abundance of "social movements and organizations concerned with gender and sexual minority oppression and discrimination."<ref>{{cite journal|author=Beden Offord|title=Queer Activist Intersections in Southeast Asia: Human Rights and Cultural Studies|journal=Ways of Knowing About Human Rights in Asia|editor=Vera Mackie|volume=46|publisher=Routledge|date=2016}}</ref> Today, most LGBTQ-affirming Islamic organizations and individual congregations are primarily based in the [[Western world]] and [[South Asia]]n countries; they usually identify themselves with the [[Liberalism and progressivism within Islam|liberal and progressive movements within Islam]].<ref name="lawnet.fordham.edu" /><ref>{{cite book |author-last=Geissinger |author-first=Aisha |year=2012 |chapter=Islam and Discourses on Same-Sex Desire |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8sn9vMPUsNYC&pg=PA80 |editor1-last=Boisvert |editor1-first=Donald L. |editor2-last=Johnson |editor2-first=Jay E. |title=Queer Religion: Homosexuality in Modern Religious History, Volume 1 |location=[[Santa Barbara, California]] |publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group|Praeger Publishers]] |pages=80–90 |isbn=978-0-313-35359-8 |lccn=2011043406 |access-date=2021-12-10 |archive-date=2023-04-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034028/https://books.google.com/books?id=8sn9vMPUsNYC&pg=PA80 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author-last=Kurzman |author-first=Charles |author-link=Charles Kurzman |year=1998 |chapter=Liberal Islam and Its Islamic Context |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4n8HSe9SfXMC&pg=PA1 |editor-last=Kurzman |editor-first=Charles |title=Liberal Islam: A Sourcebook |location=[[Oxford]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |pages=1–26 |isbn=9780195116229 |oclc=37368975 |access-date=2021-12-10 |archive-date=2023-04-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034036/https://books.google.com/books?id=4n8HSe9SfXMC&pg=PA1 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In [[France]] there was an [[Marriage in Islam|Islamic]] [[same-sex marriage]] on February 18, 2012.<ref>{{cite web|date=2012-03-30|title=FRANCE – Concilier islam et homosexualité, le combat de Ludovic-Mohamed Zahed – France 24|url=http://www.france24.com/fr/20120330-france-mariage-homosexuel-musulmans-gay-religion-imam-coran-corps-livre-ludovic-mohamed-zahed|work=France 24|access-date=2012-11-29|archive-date=2015-02-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150217121914/http://www.france24.com/fr/20120330-france-mariage-homosexuel-musulmans-gay-religion-imam-coran-corps-livre-ludovic-mohamed-zahed/|url-status=live}}</ref> In Paris in November 2012 a room in a Buddhist prayer hall was used by gay Muslims and called a "gay-friendly mosque",<ref>{{cite web|last=Banerji|first=Robin|date=November 30, 2012|title=Gay-friendly 'mosque' opens in Paris|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20547335|access-date=March 27, 2021|website=BBC|archive-date=September 21, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220921070447/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20547335|url-status=live}}</ref> and a French Islamic website<ref>{{cite web|title=Homosexual Muslims – HM2F|url=http://www.homosexuels-musulmans.org/gay_muslims.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227151103/http://www.homosexuels-musulmans.org/gay_muslims.html|archive-date=2016-12-27|access-date=2018-01-20|work=homosexuels-musulmans.org}}</ref> is supporting religious same-sex marriage. The [[Ibn Ruschd-Goethe mosque]] in Berlin is a liberal mosque open to all types of Muslims, where men and women pray together and LGBT worshippers are welcomed and supported.<ref>{{cite web|last=Sarac|first=Tugay|date=2 May 2019|title=My LGBT-friendly mosque saved me from being radicalised|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcthree/article/cc70b8a4-f14f-4324-a81a-82fe347f9664|access-date=3 May 2019|website=BBC|series=BBC Three|archive-date=3 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190503001654/https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcthree/article/cc70b8a4-f14f-4324-a81a-82fe347f9664|url-status=live}}</ref> Other significant LGBT-inclusive mosques or prayer groups include the El-Tawhid Juma Circle Unity Mosque in Toronto,<ref>{{cite web|title=juma circle|url=http://www.jumacircle.com/|access-date=2021-11-14|website=juma circle|language=en-US|archive-date=2017-04-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170419195623/http://www.jumacircle.com/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=2016-06-03|title=Queer and going to the mosque: 'I've never felt more Muslim than I do now'|url=http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/jun/03/unity-mosque-queer-muslim-islam-samra-habib|access-date=2021-11-14|website=The Guardian|language=en|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152900/https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/jun/03/unity-mosque-queer-muslim-islam-samra-habib|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Gillis|first=Wendy|date=2013-08-25|title=Islamic scholars experience diversity of Muslim practices at U of T summer program|language=en-CA|work=The Toronto Star|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/08/25/islamic_scholars_experience_diversity_of_muslim_practices_at_u_of_t_summer_program.html|access-date=2021-11-14|issn=0319-0781|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152856/https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/08/25/islamic_scholars_experience_diversity_of_muslim_practices_at_u_of_t_summer_program.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Masjid an-Nur al-Isslaah (Light of Reform Mosque) in Washington, D.C.,<ref>{{cite web|title=Meet America's first openly gay imam|url=http://america.aljazeera.com/watch/shows/america-tonight/america-tonight-blog/2013/12/20/meet-america-s-firstopenlygayimam.html|access-date=2021-11-14|website=america.aljazeera.com|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152857/http://america.aljazeera.com/watch/shows/america-tonight/america-tonight-blog/2013/12/20/meet-america-s-firstopenlygayimam.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Affirming mosques">{{cite web|title=Affirming mosques help gay Muslims reconcile faith, sexuality|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/affirming-mosques-help-gay-muslims-reconcile-faith-sexuality-n988151|access-date=2021-11-14|website=NBC News|date=April 2019 |language=en|archive-date=2021-11-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211116193847/https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/affirming-mosques-help-gay-muslims-reconcile-faith-sexuality-n988151|url-status=live}}</ref> Masjid Al-Rabia in Chicago,<ref>{{Cite news|title=A Mosque For LGBTQ Muslims|language=en|work=NPR.org|url=https://www.npr.org/2018/04/15/602605271/a-mosque-for-lgbtq-muslims|access-date=2021-11-14|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152856/https://www.npr.org/2018/04/15/602605271/a-mosque-for-lgbtq-muslims|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Affirming mosques" /><ref>{{cite web|title=Masjid al-Rabia Home|url=https://masjidalrabia.org/|access-date=2021-11-14|website=Masjid al-Rabia|language=en-US|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152857/https://masjidalrabia.org/|url-status=live}}</ref> Unity Mosque in Atlanta,<ref>{{cite web|title=Atlanta Unity Mosque|url=https://www.atlantaunitymosque.org/|access-date=2021-11-14|website=Atlanta Unity Mosque|language=en-US|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152857/https://www.atlantaunitymosque.org/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Stances of Faiths on LGBTQ Issues: Islam|url=https://www.hrc.org/resources/stances-of-faiths-on-lgbt-issues-islam|access-date=2021-11-14|website=HRC|language=en-US|archive-date=2017-11-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171120073159/http://www.hrc.org/resources/stances-of-faiths-on-lgbt-issues-islam|url-status=live}}</ref> People's Mosque in Cape Town South Africa,<ref>{{cite web|date=2015-05-09|title=Is Cape Town's women and gay-friendly mosque a sign of new Muslim attitudes?|url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/cape-towns-gay-women-friendly-mosque-sign-re-interpretation-muslim-faith|access-date=2021-11-14|website=PBS NewsHour|language=en-us|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152858/https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/cape-towns-gay-women-friendly-mosque-sign-re-interpretation-muslim-faith|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Gay Mosque in Cape Town – rainbopedia.org|url=https://rainbopedia.org/wiki/gay-mosque-in-cape-town/|access-date=2021-11-14|website=rainbopedia.org|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152858/https://rainbopedia.org/wiki/gay-mosque-in-cape-town/|url-status=live}}</ref> Masjid Ul-Umam mosque in Cape Town,<ref>{{Cite news|date=2019-02-05|title='Space to coexist': Inside South Africa's LGBT-friendly mosque|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-safrica-lgbt-religion-idUSKCN1PU0J9|access-date=2021-11-14|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152859/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-safrica-lgbt-religion-idUSKCN1PU0J9|url-status=live}}</ref> Qal'bu Maryamin in California,<ref>{{cite web|date=2017-04-09|title=Women Building New Mosque in CA That's Open to All Genders|url=https://www.worldreligionnews.com/religion-news/women-building-new-mosque-ca-thats-open-genders|access-date=2021-11-14|website=World Religion News|language=en-US|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152900/https://www.worldreligionnews.com/religion-news/women-building-new-mosque-ca-thats-open-genders|url-status=live}}</ref> and the Nur Ashki Jerrahi Sufi Community in New York City.<ref>{{cite web|date=2018-06-14|title=How Queer Muslims Are Working to End Stigma This Ramadan|url=https://www.them.us/story/lgbtq-iftar|access-date=2021-11-14|website=them.|language=en-US|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152857/https://www.them.us/story/lgbtq-iftar|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=2018-06-14|title=Queering Ramadan: Second Annual LGBTQAI+ Muslims and Allies Iftar|url=https://womensenews.org/2018/06/queering-ramadan-second-annual-lgbtqai-muslims-and-allies-iftar/|access-date=2021-11-14|website=Women's eNews|language=en-US|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152900/https://womensenews.org/2018/06/queering-ramadan-second-annual-lgbtqai-muslims-and-allies-iftar/|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Muslims for Progressive Values]], based in the United States and [[Malaysia]], is "a faith-based, grassroots, human rights organization that embodies and advocates for the traditional Qur'anic values of social justice and equality for all, for the 21st Century."<ref>{{cite web|title=Who We Are|url=http://www.mpvusa.org/who-we-are|access-date=5 April 2017|work=MPVUSA.org|archive-date=19 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170419012345/http://www.mpvusa.org/who-we-are/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=SEXUAL DIVERSITY|url=https://www.mpvusa.org/sexual-diversity|access-date=2021-11-14|website=Muslims for Progressive Values|language=en-US|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152900/https://www.mpvusa.org/sexual-diversity|url-status=live}}</ref> The Mecca Institute is an LGBT-inclusive and progressive online Islamic seminary, and serves as an online center of Islamic learning and research.<ref name="Affirming mosques" /><ref>{{cite web|title=Home|url=https://www.meccainstitute.org/|access-date=2021-11-14|website=www.meccainstitute.org|language=en|archive-date=2021-11-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211114152900/https://www.meccainstitute.org/|url-status=live}}</ref>

====Defunct movements====
[[File:Al-Fatiha Muslim Gays - Gay Parade 2008 in San Francisco (2626954534).jpg|thumb|Members of ''Al Fatiha'' at the LGBT Pride parade in San Francisco 2008]]
The [[Al-Fatiha Foundation]] was an organization which tried to advance the cause of gay, lesbian, and transgender Muslims. It was founded in 1998 by [[Faisal Alam]], a [[Pakistani American]], and was registered as a [[nonprofit]] organization in the United States. The organization was an offshoot of an internet [[listserve]] that brought together many gay, lesbian and questioning Muslims from various countries.<ref>{{cite news|title=Cyber Mecca|publisher=The Advocate|date=14 March 2000}}</ref>

====Active movements====
* In 1996, [[Muhsin Hendricks]] founded the inner circle, a support network aiding gay Muslims in coming to terms with their sexual orientation.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-11-02 |title=A gay mosque in Cape Town sounds the call to prayer for everyone |url=https://qz.com/africa/824711/a-gay-mosque-in-cape-town-sounds-the-call-to-pray-for-everyone |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=Quartz |language=en}}</ref> In 2011 he founded Al Ghurbaah foundation.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fullerton |first=Jamie |date=2022-10-19 |title=‘I’m hoping there will be more queer imams’ |url=https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2022/oct/19/im-hoping-there-will-be-more-queer-imams |access-date=2025-02-22 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>
* In November 2012, a prayer room was set up in Paris by gay Islamic scholar and founder of the group 'Homosexual Muslims of France' [[Ludovic-Mohamed Zahed]]. It was described by the press as the first gay-friendly mosque in Europe. The reaction from the rest of the Muslim community in France has been mixed. The opening has been condemned by the [[Grand Mosque of Paris]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20547335|title=Gay-friendly 'mosque' opens in Paris|first=Robin|last=Banerji|work=BBC News|date=30 November 2012|access-date=21 July 2018|archive-date=21 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220921070447/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20547335|url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:Pride London 2011 - 001.jpg|right|thumb|Float for gay Muslims at [[Pride parade|Pride]] London 2011]]
* In 2014, [https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/mar/21/my-boyfriend-killed-himself-because-his-family-couldnt-accept-that-he-was-gay following the death] of British born doctor Dr Nazim Mahmood, the charity [[Naz and Matt Foundation]] was launched to support LGBTQI+ individuals from predominantly Muslim backgrounds.
* In September 2019, a British charity known as Imaan attempted to crowdfund £5,000 to host a festival for LGBTQ+ Muslims to challenge homophobic laws and societal views of LGBTQ+ individuals in Middle Eastern countries and the larger Muslim community. Many LGBTQ+ Muslims are forced to choose between their sexuality and their religion, often forcing individuals to repress who they truly are.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-49796967|title=LGBT Muslims told to choose religion or sexuality|last=Baggs|first=Cherry Wilson and Michael|date=23 September 2019|access-date=6 November 2019|language=en-GB|archive-date=26 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190926184203/https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-49796967|url-status=live}}</ref>
* The [[Ibn Ruschd-Goethe mosque]] in Berlin is a liberal mosque open to all types of Muslims, where men and women pray together and LGBT worshippers are welcomed and supported.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcthree/article/cc70b8a4-f14f-4324-a81a-82fe347f9664|website=BBC|series=BBC Three|title=My LGBT-friendly mosque saved me from being radicalised|first=Tugay|last=Sarac|date=2 May 2019|access-date=3 May 2019|archive-date=3 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190503001654/https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcthree/article/cc70b8a4-f14f-4324-a81a-82fe347f9664|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[Nur Warsame]] has been an advocate for LGBTQ Muslims. He founded Marhaba, a support group for [[queer]] [[Islam in Australia|Muslims]] in [[Melbourne]], [[LGBT rights in Australia|Australia]]. In May 2016, Wahrsage revealed that he is homosexual in an interview on [[SBS 2|SBS2]]'s [[The Feed (Australian TV series)|The Feed]], being the first openly gay [[Imam]] in Australia.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Power|first1=Shannon|title=Being gay and muslim: 'death is your repentance'|url=http://www.starobserver.com.au/news/being-gay-and-muslim-death-is-your-repentance/148975|access-date=5 May 2016|work=[[Star Observer]]|date=3 May 2016|archive-date=5 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160505142450/http://www.starobserver.com.au/news/being-gay-and-muslim-death-is-your-repentance/148975|url-status=live}}</ref>
* The [[Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity]] (MASGD) in the United States began on 23 January 2013. On 20 June 2016, an interview with Mirna Haidar (a member of the MASGD's steering committee) was published in [[The Washington Post|''The Washington Post'']]. She described the MASGD as supporting "LGBT Muslims who want or need to embrace both their sexual and religious identities." Haidar said that the support which the MASGD provides is needed because a person who is "Muslim and queer " faces "two different systems of oppression": [[Islamophobia]] and [[homophobia]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/06/20/what-you-should-know-about-being-lgbt-and-muslim-from-a-leading-lgbt-muslim-group/|title=What you should know about being LGBT and Muslim, from a leading LGBT Muslim group|work=WashingtonPost.com|access-date=5 April 2017|archive-date=9 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170309192935/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/06/20/what-you-should-know-about-being-lgbt-and-muslim-from-a-leading-lgbt-muslim-group/|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[Muslims for Progressive Values]], based in the United States and in Malaysia, is "a faith-based, grassroots, human rights organization that embodies and advocates for the traditional Qur'anic values of social justice and equality for all, for the 21st Century."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mpvusa.org/who-we-are|title=Who We Are|work=MPVUSA.org|access-date=5 April 2017|archive-date=19 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170419012345/http://www.mpvusa.org/who-we-are/|url-status=live}}</ref>
* The Safra Project for women is based in the UK. It supports and works on issues relating to prejudice LGBTQ Muslim women. It was founded in October 2001 by Muslim LBT women. The Safra Project's "ethos is one of inclusiveness and diversity."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://rabble.ca/toolkit/rabblepedia/safra-project|title=The Safra Project – rabble.ca|work=Rabble.ca|date=11 April 2014|access-date=5 April 2017|archive-date=15 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215181315/http://rabble.ca/toolkit/rabblepedia/safra-project|url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:El-Farouk Khaki nomination campaign launch Apr5-07.jpg|thumb|[[El-Farouk Khaki]], founding member of the Salaam group and the Toronto Unity Mosque / el-Tawhid Juma Circle]]
* Salaam is the first gay Muslim group in Canada and second in the world. Salaam was found in 1993 by [[El-Farouk Khaki]], who organized the Salaam/Al-Fateha International Conference in 2003.<ref name="patch">{{cite news|author=Catherine Patch|title=Queer Muslims find peace; El-Farouk Khaki founded Salaam Offers a place to retain spirituality|newspaper=Toronto Star|date=15 June 2006}}</ref>
* [[Sarajevo Open Centre]] ({{lang|sh-Latn|Sarajevski otvoreni centar}}), abbreviated SOC, is an independent [[feminist]] [[civil society]] organization and [[advocacy]] group which campaigns for [[lesbian]], [[gay]], [[bisexual]], [[transgender|trans]] and [[intersex]] ([[LGBTI rights|LGBTI]]) people and [[women rights]] in [[LGBT rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia and Herzegovina]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Agan Uzunović |url=https://revolution-news.com/bosnian-lgbti-activists-demand-equality-now/ |title=Bosnian LGBTI Activists Demand: Equality Now! |publisher=Revolution News |date=18 May 2016 |access-date=25 May 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160603070018/https://revolution-news.com/bosnian-lgbti-activists-demand-equality-now/ |archive-date=3 June 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://soc.ba/en/about-us/ |title=About us – Sarajevski Otvoreni Centar |date=21 June 2013 |publisher=Soc.ba |access-date=25 May 2016 |archive-date=4 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160604193436/http://soc.ba/en/about-us/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The organization also gives asylum and psychological support to victims of discrimination and violence.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.6yka.com/novost/105440/povecan-broj-slucajeva-krsenja-ljudskih-prava-lgbti-osoba- |title=Povećan broj slučajeva kršenja ljudskih prava LGBTI osoba – BUKA Magazin |publisher=6yka.com |date=19 May 2016 |access-date=25 May 2016 |archive-date=23 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160523011001/http://www.6yka.com/novost/105440/povecan-broj-slucajeva-krsenja-ljudskih-prava-lgbti-osoba- |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* The ''Pink Report'' is an annual report made by the organization on the state of the Human Rights of LGBTI People in the country and is supported by the Norwegian Embassy.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.norveska.ba/News_and_events/Society-and-Policy/Norwegian-Embassy-supports-Sarajevo-Open-Centres-Pink-Report/ |title=Norwegian Embassy supports Sarajevo Open Centre's Pink Report |publisher=Norveska.ba |date=17 May 2016 |access-date=25 May 2016 |archive-date=7 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160807112419/http://www.norveska.ba/News_and_events/Society-and-Policy/Norwegian-Embassy-supports-Sarajevo-Open-Centres-Pink-Report/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* In May 2009, the Toronto Unity Mosque / el-Tawhid Juma Circle was founded by Laury Silvers, a [[University of Toronto]] religious studies scholar, alongside Muslim gay-rights activists El-Farouk Khaki and Troy Jackson. Unity Mosque/ETJC is a [[gender-equal]], LGBT+ affirming, mosque.<ref>{{cite web|title=El-tawhid juma circle|url=http://www.jumacircle.com/|access-date=19 April 2017|archive-date=19 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170419195623/http://www.jumacircle.com/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Mastracci|first1=Davide|title=What It's Like To Pray At A Queer-Inclusive Mosque|url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/davidemastracci/toronto-lgbt-unity-mosque|access-date=19 April 2017|work=[[BuzzFeed]]|date=4 April 2017|archive-date=18 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170518032950/https://www.buzzfeed.com/davidemastracci/toronto-lgbt-unity-mosque|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Habib|first1=Samra|title=Queer and going to the mosque: 'I've never felt more Muslim than I do now'|url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/jun/03/unity-mosque-queer-muslim-islam-samra-habib|access-date=19 April 2017|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=3 June 2016|archive-date=19 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170419195438/https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/jun/03/unity-mosque-queer-muslim-islam-samra-habib|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Gillis|first1=Wendy|title=Islamic scholars experience diversity of Muslim practices at U of T summer program|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/08/25/islamic_scholars_experience_diversity_of_muslim_practices_at_u_of_t_summer_program.html|access-date=19 April 2017|work=[[Toronto Star]]|date=25 August 2013|archive-date=20 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170420045336/https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/08/25/islamic_scholars_experience_diversity_of_muslim_practices_at_u_of_t_summer_program.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The mosque offers aims to eliminate gender segregation by removing a dress code for women. While it was the only mosques of its kind when it first opened, more communities and mosques have become more accepting of LGBT members. El-Farouk Khaki has been quoted as saying "more and more groups, communities and mosques that celebrate and embrace inclusion and diversity are forming".<ref name="nbcnews.com">{{Cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/affirming-mosques-help-gay-muslims-reconcile-faith-sexuality-n988151|title=Affirming mosques help gay Muslims reconcile faith, sexuality|website=NBC News|date=April 2019 |language=en|access-date=6 November 2019|archive-date=16 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211116193847/https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/affirming-mosques-help-gay-muslims-reconcile-faith-sexuality-n988151|url-status=live}}</ref>
* Imam Daayiee Abdullah, one of America's first openly gay Imams, argues that the existing view towards homosexuality among Muslims is based on tradition, not an interpretation of scriptures. In 2011, Abdullah created an LGBTQ+ mosques, known as the Light of Reform Mosque, to provide members of the LGBTQ+ community with marriage ceremonies. Abdullah opened the Mecca Institute in an attempt to open at least 50 LGBTQ+ friendly mosques by 2030.<ref name="nbcnews.com" />

===Anti-LGBTQ===
====Ex-gay organizations====
There are a number of Islamic [[ex-gay]] organizations, that is, those composed of people claiming to have experienced a basic change in [[sexual orientation]] from exclusive homosexuality to exclusive [[heterosexual]]ity.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Throckmorton |first=Warren |author2=Pattison, M. L. |date=June 2002 |title=Initial empirical and clinical findings concerning the change process for ex-gays |url=http://www.drthrockmorton.com/article.asp?id=1 |url-status=dead |journal=Professional Psychology: Research and Practice |volume=33 |pages=242–248 |doi=10.1037/0735-7028.33.3.242 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080504130831/http://www.drthrockmorton.com/article.asp?id=1 |archive-date=4 May 2008 |number=3}}</ref> These groups, like [[Ex-gay movement#Ex-gay organizations|those based in socially conservative Christianity]], are aimed at attempting to guide homosexuals towards heterosexuality.
One of the leading LGBT reformatory Muslim organization is [[StraightWay Foundation]], which was established in the [[United Kingdom]] in 2004 as an organization that provides information and advice for [[Muslims]] who struggle with [[homosexual]] attraction.<ref name="samar">{{cite book |last1=Habib |first1=Samar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9y_TyzK9_5oC&q=straightway+foundation&pg=PA217 |title=Islam and Homosexuality |date=2010 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=9780313379031 |page=217 |language=en |access-date=2 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034037/https://books.google.com/books?id=9y_TyzK9_5oC&q=straightway+foundation&pg=PA217 |archive-date=19 April 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Badgett |first1=Lee |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wmyUAgAAQBAJ&q=straightway+foundation&pg=PA221 |title=Sexual Orientation Discrimination: An International Perspective |last2=Frank |first2=Jeff |date=2007 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9781135987657 |page=222 |language=en |access-date=2 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034033/https://books.google.com/books?id=wmyUAgAAQBAJ&q=straightway+foundation&pg=PA221 |archive-date=19 April 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Whitaker |first1=Brian |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e0YhBQAAQBAJ&q=straightway+foundation&pg=PT83 |title=Unspeakable Love: Gay and Lesbian Life in the Middle East |date=2011 |publisher=Saqi |isbn=9780863564598 |language=en |access-date=2020-10-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034027/https://books.google.com/books?id=e0YhBQAAQBAJ&q=straightway+foundation&pg=PT83 |archive-date=2023-04-19 |url-status=live}}</ref> They believe "that through following God's guidance", one may "cease to be" gay. They teach that the male-female pair is the "basis for humanity's growth" and that homosexual acts "are forbidden by God".<ref>{{cite web |title=The StraightWay Foundation Homepage |url=http://straightway.sinfree.net/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061212012014/http://straightway.sinfree.net/ |archive-date=12 December 2006 |access-date=6 April 2007}}</ref>  [[NARTH]] has written favourably of the group.<ref>{{cite web |date=February 8, 2008 |title=Help for Same-Sex Attracted Muslims |url=http://www.narth.com/docs/muslims.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080403082058/http://www.narth.com/docs/muslims.html |archive-date=April 3, 2008}}</ref> In 2004, Straightway entered into a controversy with the contemporary [[Mayor of London]], [[Ken Livingstone]], and the controversial Islamic cleric [[Yusuf al-Qaradawi]]. It was suggested that Livingstone was giving a platform to Islamic fundamentalists, and not liberal and progressive Muslims.<ref>{{cite news |last=Sohaib |first=Saeed |date=April 2005 |title=London mayor stands firm despite sustained campaign |url=http://www.iwitness.co.uk/politics/0405p01.htm |url-status=live |access-date=2019-08-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190802135153/http://www.iwitness.co.uk/politics/0405p01.htm |archive-date=2019-08-02}}</ref> Straightway responded to this by sending Livingstone a letter thanking him for his support of al-Qaradawi.<ref>{{cite news |last=Waugh |first=Paul |date=3 March 2005 |title=Ken in Row Over Anti-gay Link |url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-17022032-details/Ken+in+row+over+anti-gay+link/article.do |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090211111441/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-17022032-details/Ken+in+row+over+anti-gay+link/article.do |archive-date=11 February 2009}}</ref>  Livingstone then ignited controversy when he thanked Straightway for the letter.<ref>{{cite news |author=Caroline Fourest and Fiammetta Venner |date=30 March 2005 |title=Ken le rouge vire au vert islam |language=fr |url=http://www.prochoix.org/cgi/blog/index.php/2005/03/30/277-ken-le-rouge-vire-au-vert-islam |url-status=live |access-date=2 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200927225812/http://www.prochoix.org/cgi/blog/index.php/2005/03/30/277-ken-le-rouge-vire-au-vert-islam |archive-date=27 September 2020}}</ref>

=== Actions against LGBTQ people ===
Several anti-LGBT incidents have occurred:
* In 2012, in the English city of [[Derby]], some Muslim men "distributed ... leaflets depicting gay men being executed in an attempt to encourage hatred against homosexuals." The leaflets had such titles as "Turn or Burn" and "God abhors you" and they advocated a death penalty for homosexuality.<ref>{{cite web |date=10 January 2012 |title=Muslims posted 'nasty and frightening' anti-gay leaflets demanding homosexuals 'turn or burn' |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/9004998/Muslims-posted-nasty-and-frightening-anti-gay-leaflets-demanding-homosexuals-turn-or-burn.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/9004998/Muslims-posted-nasty-and-frightening-anti-gay-leaflets-demanding-homosexuals-turn-or-burn.html |archive-date=2022-01-11 |access-date=5 April 2017 |work=Telegraph.co.uk}}{{cbignore}}</ref> The men were "convicted of hate crimes" on 20 January 2012. One of the men said that he was doing his Muslim duty.<ref name="economist.com" />
* 31 December 2013 – New Year's Eve arson attack on gay nightclub in [[Seattle]], packed with 300+ revelers, but no one injured. Subject charged prosecuted under federal terror and hate-crime charges.<ref>{{cite web |title=Man pleads guilty to arson at Seattle gay nightclub |url=http://blogs.seattletimes.com/today/2014/05/suspect-in-arson-at-seattle-gay-nightclub-to-enter-plea/?syndication=rss |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200214123727/https://blogs.seattletimes.com/today/2014/05/suspect-in-arson-at-seattle-gay-nightclub-to-enter-plea/?syndication=rss |archive-date=14 February 2020 |access-date=5 April 2017 |work=SeattleTimes.com}}</ref>
* 12 February 2016 – Across Europe, gay refugees facing abuse at migrant asylum shelters are forced to flee shelters.<ref>{{cite web |date=22 February 2016 |title=Across Europe, gay refugees facing abuse in asylum shelters |url=https://www.foxnews.com/world/across-europe-gay-refugees-facing-abuse-in-asylum-shelters/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215233920/http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/02/22/across-europe-gay-migrants-face-abuse-in-asylum-shelters.html |archive-date=15 February 2017 |access-date=5 April 2017 |work=FoxNews.com}}</ref>
* 25 April 2016 – [[Xulhaz Mannan]], an employee of the United States embassy in Dhaka and the editor of Bangladesh's first and only LGBT magazine, was killed in his apartment by a gang of Islamic militants.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Al-Mahmood |first=Syed Zain |date=26 April 2016 |title=Editor of Bangladesh Gay Magazine Hacked to Death in His Home |newspaper=Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/two-men-including-usaid-employee-killed-in-bangladesh-1461603764 |url-status=live |access-date=30 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160428080321/http://www.wsj.com/articles/two-men-including-usaid-employee-killed-in-bangladesh-1461603764 |archive-date=28 April 2016 |issn=0099-9660}}</ref>
* 12 June 2016 – At least 49 people were killed and 50 injured in [[Orlando nightclub shooting|a mass shooting]] at [[Pulse (nightclub)|Pulse gay nightclub]] in Orlando, Florida, in the second deadliest [[mass shooting]] by an individual and the deadliest incident of violence against LGBT people in U.S. history. The shooter, [[Omar Mateen]], pledged allegiance to ISIL. The act has been described by investigators as an [[Islamist terrorism|Islamic terrorist attack]] and a [[hate crime]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Tsukayama |first1=Hayley |last2=Goldman |first2=Adam |last3=Holley |first3=Peter |last4=Berman |first4=Mark |date=12 June 2016 |title=Orlando nightclub shooting: 50 killed in shooting rampage at gay club; gunman pledged allegiance to ISIS |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2016/06/12/orlando-nightclub-shooting-about-20-dead-in-domestic-terror-incident-at-gay-club/ |url-status=live |access-date=12 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160615021024/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2016/06/12/orlando-nightclub-shooting-about-20-dead-in-domestic-terror-incident-at-gay-club/ |archive-date=15 June 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Ingraham |first=Christopher |date=12 June 2016 |title=In the modern history of mass shootings in America, Orlando is the deadliest |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/06/12/in-the-modern-history-of-mass-shootings-in-america-orlando-is-the-absolute-worst/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180201080534/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/06/12/in-the-modern-history-of-mass-shootings-in-america-orlando-is-the-absolute-worst/ |archive-date=1 February 2018 |access-date=18 June 2016 |newspaper=Washington Post}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Peralta |first=Eyder |date=13 June 2016 |title=Putting 'Deadliest Mass Shooting In U.S. History' Into Some Historical Context |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/06/13/481884291/putting-deadliest-mass-shooting-in-u-s-history-into-some-historical-context |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171022063734/http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/06/13/481884291/putting-deadliest-mass-shooting-in-u-s-history-into-some-historical-context |archive-date=22 October 2017 |access-date=6 April 2018 |publisher=NPR}}</ref><ref name="hatecrime">{{cite news |last1=McBride |first1=Brian |last2=Edison Hayden |first2=Michael |date=15 June 2016 |title=Orlando Gay Nightclub Massacre a Hate Crime and Act of Terror, FBI Says |work=ABC News |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/investigators-turn-focus-omar-mateens-wife-criminal-charges/story?id=39867320 |url-status=live |access-date=17 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160616184804/https://abcnews.go.com/US/investigators-turn-focus-omar-mateens-wife-criminal-charges/story?id=39867320 |archive-date=16 June 2016}}</ref> Upon further review, investigators indicated Omar Mateen showed few signs of radicalization, suggesting that the shooter's pledge to ISIL may have been a calculated move to garner more news coverage.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Investigators Say Orlando Shooter Showed Few Warning Signs Of Radicalization |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/06/18/482621690/investigators-say-orlando-shooter-showed-few-warning-signs-of-radicalization |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181201094240/https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/06/18/482621690/investigators-say-orlando-shooter-showed-few-warning-signs-of-radicalization |archive-date=1 December 2018 |access-date=20 June 2016 |website=NPR.org}}</ref> Muslim American and their [[community leader]]s swiftly condemned the attack,<ref name="Gunaratna">{{cite news |last=Gunaratna |first=Shanika |date=13 June 2016 |title=Muslim Americans rush to condemn Orlando massacre |publisher=CBS News |url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/orlando-shooting-pulse-nightclub-muslims-condemn-attack/ |url-status=live |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160614011325/http://www.cbsnews.com/news/orlando-shooting-pulse-nightclub-muslims-condemn-attack/ |archive-date=14 June 2016}}</ref><ref name="CookeAli">{{cite news |last1=Cooke |first1=Kristina |last2=Ali |first2=Idrees |date=13 June 2016 |title=Muslim leaders condemn Florida massacre, brace for backlash |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-florida-shooting-mosques-idUSKCN0YZ2K6 |url-status=live |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160614025447/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-florida-shooting-mosques-idUSKCN0YZ2K6 |archive-date=14 June 2016}}</ref> and prayer vigils for the victims were held at mosques across the country.{{efn|These vigils included ones held in California,<ref>{{cite news |last=Lozano |first=Carlos |date=12 June 2016 |title=Several vigils are planned around Southern California for the Orlando shooting victims |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-vigils-20160612-snap-story.html |url-status=live |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160612224556/http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-vigils-20160612-snap-story.html |archive-date=12 June 2016}}</ref> Arizona,<ref>{{cite news |last=Mooney |first=Sean |date=13 June 2016 |title=Tucson mosque condemns shootings in Orlando |publisher=KVOA |url=http://www.kvoa.com/story/32205011/tucson-mosque-condemns-shootings-in-orlando |url-status=dead |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160614115026/http://www.kvoa.com/story/32205011/tucson-mosque-condemns-shootings-in-orlando |archive-date=14 June 2016}}</ref> Michigan,<ref>{{cite news |last=Warikoo |first=Niraj |date=12 June 2016 |title=Metro Detroit Muslims strongly condemn Orlando shooting |work=Detroit Free Press |publisher=USA Today |url=http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2016/06/12/area-muslims-strongly-condemn-orlando-shooting/85792084/ |url-status=live |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210801112554/https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2016/06/12/area-muslims-strongly-condemn-orlando-shooting/85792084/ |archive-date=1 August 2021}}</ref> Pennsylvania,<ref>{{cite news |last=Galvez |first=Samantha |date=13 June 2016 |title=Harrisburg mosque holds prayer vigil for Orlando victims |publisher=[[WHTM-TV]] |url=http://abc27.com/2016/06/13/harrisburg-mosque-holds-prayer-vigil-for-orlando-victims/ |url-status=live |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160613234454/http://abc27.com/2016/06/13/harrisburg-mosque-holds-prayer-vigil-for-orlando-victims/ |archive-date=13 June 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Video with a description; name in parenthesis-->Whitney Leaming |date=13 June 2016 |title=Orlando Muslims turn to prayer after shooting puts community 'on edge' |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/video/national/orlando-muslims-turn-to-prayer-after-shooting-puts-community-on-edge/2016/06/13/9c1c8aec-3134-11e6-ab9d-1da2b0f24f93_video.html |url-status=live |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210614133008/https://www.washingtonpost.com/video/national/orlando-muslims-turn-to-prayer-after-shooting-puts-community-on-edge/2016/06/13/9c1c8aec-3134-11e6-ab9d-1da2b0f24f93_video.html |archive-date=14 June 2021}}</ref> Connecticut,<ref>{{cite news |last=DeAngelis |first=Jenna |date=12 June 2016 |title=Muslim and LGBT community hold vigil for Orlando victims in Hartford |publisher=[[WTIC-TV]] |url=http://fox61.com/2016/06/12/muslim-and-lgbt-community-hold-vigil-for-orlando-victims-in-hartford/ |url-status=live |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190802123304/https://fox61.com/2016/06/12/muslim-and-lgbt-community-hold-vigil-for-orlando-victims-in-hartford/ |archive-date=2 August 2019}}</ref> Florida,<ref>{{cite news |last=Morris |first=Walter |date=12 June 2016 |title=Local Muslim community condemns Orlando nightclub shooting |publisher=WSVN |url=http://wsvn.com/news/local/local-muslim-community-condemns-orlando-nightclub-shooting/#.V17SgPi_9_o.twitter |url-status=live |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220308225615/https://wsvn.com/news/local/local-muslim-community-condemns-orlando-nightclub-shooting/#.V17SgPi_9_o.twitter |archive-date=8 March 2022}}</ref> and Wisconsin.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hutchison |first=Ben |date=13 June 2016 |title=Milwaukee mosque holds prayer vigil for Orlando shooting victims |publisher=WISN |url=http://www.wisn.com/news/local-mosque-holds-prayer-vigil-for-orlando-shooting-victims/40026204 |url-status=live |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160619103641/http://www.wisn.com/news/local-mosque-holds-prayer-vigil-for-orlando-shooting-victims/40026204 |archive-date=19 June 2016}}</ref>}} The Florida mosque where Mateen sometimes prayed issued a statement condemning the attack and offering condolences to the victims.<ref>{{cite news |last=Blinder |first=Alan |date=12 June 2016 |title=Fort Pierce Mosque in Florida Condemns Attack |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/orlando-nightclub-shooting-live-updates/ft-pierce-mosque/ |url-status=live |access-date=14 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160614081856/http://www.nytimes.com/live/orlando-nightclub-shooting-live-updates/ft-pierce-mosque/ |archive-date=14 June 2016}}</ref> The [[Council on American–Islamic Relations]] called the attack "monstrous" and offered its condolences to the victims. CAIR Florida urged Muslims to donate blood and contribute funds in support of the victims' families.<ref name="Gunaratna" /><ref>{{cite news |last1=Afshar |first1=Paradise |last2=Seiden |first2=Michael |date=13 June 2016 |title=Muslim community condemns Orlando attack, calls for blood donations |publisher=[[WPLG]] |url=http://www.local10.com/news/muslim-community-condemns-orlando-attack-calls-for-blood-donations |url-status=live |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160613112143/http://www.local10.com/news/muslim-community-condemns-orlando-attack-calls-for-blood-donations |archive-date=13 June 2016}}</ref>
* During March 2019, British Muslim parents began protesting Parkfield Community School, a town where more than a third of the children are Muslim, due to the school's implementation of a "No Outsiders" sex-education program. The aim of this program was to provide students with lessons on same-sex relationships. The protest led to the school backing down by no longer following through with the "No Outsider" program. Regardless of this, the school's minister emphasized that the school tries to express equality.<ref>{{Cite news |date=7 March 2019 |title=British Muslim parents oppose LGBT lessons in primary school |newspaper=The Economist |url=https://www.economist.com/britain/2019/03/07/british-muslim-parents-oppose-lgbt-lessons-in-primary-school |url-status=live |access-date=6 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200213180948/https://www.economist.com/britain/2019/03/07/british-muslim-parents-oppose-lgbt-lessons-in-primary-school |archive-date=13 February 2020 |issn=0013-0613}}</ref>

==Muslim LGBTQ rights activists==
[[File:Al-Fatiha Muslim Gays - Gay Parade 2008 in San Francisco.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Gay Muslim activists of the [[Al-Fatiha Foundation]] holding the [[flag of Turkey]] at the [[San Francisco Pride]] (2008)]]
There are numbers of Muslim LGBT activists from different parts of the world. Some of them are listed below:<!-- Make sure all entries meet Wikipedia's notablity guidelines -->

* [[Nemat Sadat]], Afghan-American journalist, novelist, [[human rights]] and LGBTQIA+ rights activist, former professor of [[political science]] at the [[American University of Afghanistan]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Judem |first=Emily |date=30 April 2014 |title=Afghanistan's 'coming out' for LGBT rights can pave the road to peace |url=https://www.pri.org/stories/2014-04-30/afghanistans-coming-out-lgbt-rights-can-pave-road-peace |url-status=live |work=[[Pri.org]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161203024913/https://www.pri.org/stories/2014-04-30/afghanistans-coming-out-lgbt-rights-can-pave-road-peace |archive-date=3 December 2016 |access-date=28 October 2021}}</ref>
* [[Afdhere Jama]], Somali-American editor of ''Huriyah''.
* [[El-Farouk Khaki]], Tanzanian-born Canadian lawyer and founder of Salaam, the first homosexual Muslim group in [[Canada]].
* [[Faisal Alam]], Pakistani-American founder of [[Al-Fatiha Foundation]].
* [[Irshad Manji]], Canadian lesbian and human rights activist of Egyptian descent.
* [[Maryam Hatoon Molkara]], Iranian campaigner for [[transgender rights in Iran]].
* [[Parvez Sharma]], Indian-American filmmaker and LGBT rights activist.
* [[Daayiee Abdullah]], African-American gay imam from the United States.
* [[Muhsin Hendricks]], South African imam, and the first openly gay imam. He was assassinated in February 2025.
* [[Ludovic-Mohamed Zahed]], Algerian-French gay imam.
* [[Taha (Shia cleric)|Mullah Taha]], Iranian gay Shia cleric.
*[[Nur Warsame]], Australian gay imam.
* [[Amal Aden]], Somali-Norwegian author, lecturer, and lesbian rights activist.
* [[Waheed Alli, Baron Alli]], British media entrepreneur and a member of the [[House of Lords]] in the United Kingdom, sitting as a [[life peer]] for the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]].
* [[Sumaya Dalmar]], also known as Sumaya YSL, is a Somali-Canadian transgender activist and model.
* [[Blair Imani]], African-American gay rights activist.
* [[Florina Kaja]], American reality television personality, singer, actress, and activist.
* [[Saleem Kidwai]], medieval historian, gay rights activist, and translator.
* [[Tynan Power]], progressive Muslim faith leader, writer/editor, communications specialist, activist, and educator.
* [[Ahmad Danny Ramadan]], Syrian-Canadian novelist, public speaker, columnist, and gay refugee activist.
* [[Omar Sharif Jr.]], Egyptian-Canadian actor, model, and gay rights activist.
* [[Hamed Sinno]], Lebanese singer, songwriter, and musician.
* [[Samra Habib]], Pakistani Canadian photographer, writer and activist.
* [[Sarah Hegazi]], Egyptian socialist and lesbian rights activist.

==In popular culture==
===Books===
====''Islam and Homosexuality''====
In 2010, an anthology ''Islam and Homosexuality'' was published.<ref>Samar Habib, ''Islam and Homosexuality'' (Praeger, 2010).</ref> In the Forward, [[Parvez Sharma]] sounded a pessimistic note about the future: "In my lifetime I do not see Islam drafting a uniform edict that homosexuality is permissible." Following is material from two chapters dealing with the present:

<blockquote>Rusmir Musić in a chapter "Queer Visions of Islam" said that "Queer Muslims struggle daily to reconcile their sexuality and their faith." Musić began to study in college "whether or not my love for somebody of the same gender disgusts God and whether it will propel me to hell. The answer, for me, is an unequivocal ''no''. Furthermore, Musić wrote, "my research and reflection helped me to imagine my sexuality as a gift from a loving, not hateful, God."<ref>Rusmir Musić, "Queer Visions of Islam" in ''Islam and Homosexuality'', ed. Samar Habib, (Praeger, 2010), pp. 327–328.</ref></blockquote>

<blockquote>Marhuq Fatima Khan in a chapter "Queer, American, and Muslim: Cultivating Identities and Communities of Affirmation", says that "Queer Muslims employ a few narratives to enable them to reconcile their religious and sexual identities." They "fall into three broad categories: (1) God Is Merciful; (2) That Is Just Who I Am; and (3) It's Not Just Islam."<ref>Marhuq Fatima Khan, "Queer, American, and Muslim: Cultivating Identities and Communities of Affirmation" in ''Islam and Homosexuality'', ed. Samar Habib, (Praeger, 2010), 356–358.</ref></blockquote>

====''Progressive Muslims: On Justice, Gender, and Pluralism''====
In his 2003 book ''Progressive Muslims: On Justice, Gender, and Pluralism'', Professor Scott Siraj al-Haqq Kugle<ref name="emory">{{cite web |title=Scott Kugle |url=http://mesas.emory.edu/home/people/faculty/kugle.html |publisher=Emory College of Arts and Sciences |access-date=21 January 2020 |archive-date=24 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191224125024/http://mesas.emory.edu/home/people/faculty/kugle.html |url-status=live }}</ref> asserts "that Islam does not address homosexuality." In Kugle's reading, the Quran holds "a positive assessment of diversity". It "respects diversity in physical appearance, constitution, stature, and color of human beings as a natural consequence of Divine wisdom in creation." Therefore, Islam can be described as "a religion that positively assesses diversity in creation and in human societies." Furthermore, in Kugle's reading, the Quran "implies that some people are different in their sexual desires than others." Thus, homosexuality can be seen as part of the "natural diversity in sexuality in human societies." This is the way "gay and lesbian Muslims" view their homosexuality.<ref name=kugle/>{{rp|194–196}}

In addition to the Qur'an, Kugle refers to the benediction of [[Imam Al-Ghazali]] (the 11th-century Muslim theologian) which says "praise be to God, the marvels of whose creation are not subject to the arrows of accident." For Kugle, this benediction implies that "if sexuality is inherent in a person's personality, then sexual diversity is a part of creation, which is never accidental but is always marvelous." Kugle also refers to "a rich archive of same-sex sexual desires and expressions, written by or reported about respected members of society: literati, educated elites, and religious scholars." Given these writings, Kugle concludes that "one might consider Islamic societies (like classical Greece) to provide a vivid illustration of a 'homosexual-friendly' environment." This evoked from "medieval and early modern Christian Europeans" accusations that Muslim were "engaging openly in same-sex practices."<ref name=kugle/>{{rp|198}}

Kugle goes a step further in his argument and asserts that "if some Muslims find it necessary to deny that sexual diversity is part of the natural created world, then the burden of proof rests on their shoulders to illustrate their denial from the Qur'anic discourse itself."<ref name=kugle/>{{rp|196, 198}}

====''Sexual Ethics and Islam''====
[[Kecia Ali]] in her 2016 book ''Sexual Ethics and Islam'' says that "there is no one Muslim perspective on anything." Regarding the Quran, Ali says that modern scholars disagree about what it says about "same-sex intimacy". Some scholars argue that "the Qur'an does not address homosexuality or homosexuals explicitly."<ref name=ali>{{cite book|author=Kecia Ali|title=Sexual Ethics and Islam: Feminist Reflections on Qur'an, Hadith and Jurisprudence|publisher=Oneworld Publications|edition=Exp Rev|date=2016}}</ref>{{rp|xvi, 103}}

Regarding homosexuality, Ali says the belief that "exclusively homosexual desire is innate in some individuals" has been adopted "even among some relatively conservative Western Muslim thinkers." 100 Homosexual Muslims believe their homosexuality to be innate and view "their sexual orientation as God-given and immutable." She observes that "queer and trans people are sometimes treated as defective or deviant", and adds that it is "vital not to assume that variation implies imperfection or disability."<ref name=ali/>{{rp|100, 123, 206}}

Regarding "medieval Muslim culture", Ali says that "male desire to penetrate desirable youth ... was perfectly normal." Even if same-sex relations were not lawful, there was "an unwillingness to seek out and condemn instances of same-sex activity, but rather to let them pass by ... unpunished."<ref name=ali/>{{rp|105–106}} Ali states that some scholars claim that Islamic societies were 'homosexual-friendly' in history.<ref name=ali/>{{rp|100}}

In her article "Same-sex Sexual Activity and Lesbian and Bisexual Women", Ali elaborates on homosexuality as an aspect of medieval Muslim culture. She says that "same-sex sexual expression has been a more or less recognized aspect of Muslim societies for many centuries." There are many explicit discussions of "same-sex sexual activity" in medieval Arabic literature.<ref name="brandeis.edu">{{cite web|url=https://www.brandeis.edu/projects/fse/muslim/same-sex.html|author=Kecia Ali|title=Same-sex Sexual Activity and Lesbian and Bisexual Women|access-date=1 October 2016|date=2002|archive-date=30 July 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160730094550/http://www.brandeis.edu/projects/fse/muslim/same-sex.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Ali states there is a lack of focus in medieval tradition on female same-sex sexual activity, where the Qur'an mainly focuses male/male sex. With female same-sex sexual activity there is more focus on the punishment for the acts and the complications with the dower, compared to men where there is a focus on punishment but also the need for ablutions and the effect of the act on possible marriage decisions.<ref name=ali/>{{rp|101}}

====Miscellaneous====
* ''[[Islamic Homosexualities|Islamic Homosexualities: Culture, History, and Literature]]'' (1997) – essay collection
* In February 2019, the government of Indonesia – a country with a majority Muslim population – threatened to ban [[Instagram]] due to an account that was posting "Gay Muslim" comics. @Alpantuni was a profile that posted comics that tackled gay-identity and religious bigotry to connect with members of the LGBT community. Although Instagram refused to remove the account as it would violate its own terms and conditions, the account is currently unavailable.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/13/world/asia/indonesia-instagram-gay-comic.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220103/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/13/world/asia/indonesia-instagram-gay-comic.html |archive-date=2022-01-03 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title='Gay Muslim' Comic Strip Vanishes After Indonesia Calls It Pornographic|last1=Ives|first1=Mike|date=13 February 2019|work=The New York Times|access-date=6 November 2019|last2=Suhartono|first2=Muktita|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

===Films and media===
* In 2007, the documentary film ''[[A Jihad for Love]]'' was released. It was produced by [[Sandi Simcha DuBowski]] and directed by [[Parvez Sharma]]. As of 2016 the film has been shown in 49 nations to four million plus viewers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ajihadforlove.org/home.html|title=A Jihad For Love – A Film by Parvez Sharma|work=AJihadForLove.org|access-date=5 April 2017|archive-date=11 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170511130431/http://ajihadforlove.org/home.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
* ''[[Out in the Dark]]'' is a 2012 film about the gay love story of a Palestinian Muslim and an Israeli Jew.<ref name="holden">{{cite news |last1=Holden |first1=Stephen |title=Love, Forbidden and Persecuted |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/27/movies/in-out-in-the-dark-an-israeli-palestinian-affair.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220103/https://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/27/movies/in-out-in-the-dark-an-israeli-palestinian-affair.html |archive-date=2022-01-03 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=21 January 2020 |newspaper=NY Times |date=26 September 2013}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
* ''[[Breaking Fast]]'' is a love story between Mo, a gay [[Muslim]] doctor in [[Los Angeles]] and Kal who get to know each other over nightly [[iftar]]s.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://filmthreat.com/reviews/breaking-fast/ |title=Breaking Fast |last=LePire |first=Bobby |website=[[Film Threat]] |date=29 March 2020 |access-date=28 October 2020 |archive-date=5 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201205150009/https://filmthreat.com/reviews/breaking-fast/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.metroweekly.com/2020/06/film-review-breaking-fast-is-an-engaging-gay-rom-com/ |title=Film Review: 'Breaking Fast' is an engaging gay rom-com |last=Hereford |first=Andre |website=[[Metro Weekly]] |date=28 October 2020 |access-date=28 October 2020 |archive-date=18 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200918230519/https://www.metroweekly.com/2020/06/film-review-breaking-fast-is-an-engaging-gay-rom-com/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* In 2015, the documentary film ''[[A Sinner in Mecca]]'' was released. It was directed by [[Parvez Sharma]]. The film chronicles Sharma's [[Hajj]] pilgrimage to [[Mecca]], [[Saudi Arabia]] as an openly gay [[Muslim]]. The film premiered at the 2015 [[Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival]] to great critical acclaim.<ref>{{cite web|title=Press|url=http://asinnerinmecca.com/press/|website=A Sinner in Mecca|access-date=7 May 2015|archive-date=10 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181010033125/http://asinnerinmecca.com/press/|url-status=dead}}</ref> The film opened in theaters in the US on 4 September 2015 and is a New York Times Critics' Pick.<ref>{{cite news|title=In 'A Sinner in Mecca,' a Gay Director Ponders His Sexuality and Islamic Faith|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/04/movies/in-a-sinner-in-mecca-a-gay-director-ponders-his-sexuality-and-islamic-faith.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220103/https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/04/movies/in-a-sinner-in-mecca-a-gay-director-ponders-his-sexuality-and-islamic-faith.html |archive-date=2022-01-03 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|website=The New York Times|date=3 September 2015 |access-date=7 October 2015|last1=Webster |first1=Andy }}{{cbignore}}</ref>
* In 2015's ''How Gay is Pakistan?'' [[Mawaan Rizwan]] traveled to Pakistan, his country of birth, to film a documentary which explored the issues faced by other LGBTQ Muslims living under Islamic law that deems homosexuality illegal.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wyatt |first1=Daisy |title=How Gay is Pakistan? BBC3 - TV review |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/how-gay-is-pakistan-bbc3-tv-review-the-only-offensive-thing-here-was-the-imam-s-outdated-views-a6701576.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220512/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/how-gay-is-pakistan-bbc3-tv-review-the-only-offensive-thing-here-was-the-imams-outdated-views-a6701576.html |archive-date=12 May 2022 |url-status=live |website=The Independent |accessdate=12 April 2020 |language=en |date=20 October 2015}}</ref> The documentary was televised internationally, including on [[ABC2]] in [[Australia]], [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|CBC]] in [[Canada]] and in various markets via [[Amazon Prime Video]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hill |first1=Leigh Andrew |title=Mawaan Rizwan asks 'How Gay is Pakistan?' on ABC2 |url=https://www.outinperth.com/how-gay-is-pakistan/ |website=OUTInPerth - LGBTIQ News and Culture |accessdate=12 April 2020 |date=30 March 2016 |archive-date=12 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200412183405/https://www.outinperth.com/how-gay-is-pakistan/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=CBC |title=How Gay is Pakistan? |url=https://www.cbc.ca/programguide/program/how_gay_is_pakistan |website=CBC |accessdate=12 April 2020 |archive-date=25 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210825070856/https://www.cbc.ca/programguide/program/how_gay_is_pakistan |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Prime Video |title=How Gay is Pakistan? |url=https://www.amazon.com/How-Gay-Pakistan-Mawaan-Rizwan/dp/B01N0SNFQL |website=www.amazon.com |accessdate=12 April 2020 |archive-date=14 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211214120842/https://www.amazon.com/How-Gay-Pakistan-Mawaan-Rizwan/dp/B01N0SNFQL |url-status=live }}</ref>
* In 2016, [[Vice News]] released a short documentary ''Blackout: Being LGBT in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan'' in which they showed different members of the LGBT community in Lahore. Young men who are sex workers were shown in the video and they explained the difficulties of being gay in Pakistan. The documentary also focused on some underground organisations that work for basic human rights for the LGBT community. In the film, there is a short clip shown of a young boy getting beaten up and is later sodomised with a tree branch after he was caught in homosexual acts by conservative religious society members. It also displayed how gay and transgender people use social media apps like Tinder to get in contact with other people of the community.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/blackout-pakistan/|title=Blackout: Being LGBT in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan|date=9 June 2016|website=VICE News|language=en-US|access-date=2018-03-05|archive-date=2018-09-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180915145942/https://news.vice.com/video/blackout-pakistan|url-status=live}}</ref> However, this documentary, made in collaboration with [[Google|Google's]] technology incubator [[Jigsaw (company)|Jigsaw]], has been criticised by some for its sensational approach and blatantly showcasing Google's agenda of juxtaposing empowerment through digital technologies such as [[Tinder (app)|Tinder]] and the collective backwardness and oppression as shown through the blurred video of the young boy being beaten.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Mokhtar|first=Shehram|date=2020-06-15|title=Aberrant sexualities: Others under the gaze of transnational documentary|journal=Sexualities|volume=24|issue=3|language=en|pages=456–473|doi=10.1177/1363460720931339|s2cid=225662867|issn=1363-4607}}</ref>
* [[Gay Muslims]] is a six-part documentary on Channel 4 about the LGBT among Muslims, broadcast in the UK in January.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.upf.tv/about-upf/|title=About UPF – UPF (Unity Productions Foundation)|work=UPF.tv|access-date=5 April 2017|archive-date=2 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170302011512/https://www.upf.tv/about-upf/|url-status=live}}</ref>
* The Muslim Debate Initiative (MDI) is made up of Muslims "with experience in public speaking, apologetics, polemics, research and community work." One of its aims is "to support, encourage and promote debate that contrasts Islam against other intellectual and political discourses for the purpose of the pursuit of truth, intellectual scrutiny with respect, and the clarifying accurate understandings of other worldviews between people of different cultures, beliefs and political persuasions."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://thedebateinitiative.com/about-2/|title=About MDI|date=26 December 2009|website=TheDebateInitiative.com|access-date=5 April 2017|archive-date=19 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034044/https://muslimdebate.org/about-2/|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Terminology===
* [[Bacha bazi]] – Afghan slang term (lit. "boy play")
* [[Hijra (South Asia)|Hijra]] – South Asian transgender society
* [[Khanith]] – term for Arab "effeminate" men
* [[Khawal]] – Egyptian cross-dressed male dancers (often used as an anti-gay slur)

==See also==
{{Portal|Islam|LGBTQ}}
{{Wikiquote|Homosexuality#Islam}}
* [[Gender roles in Islam]]
* [[Islam and gender segregation]]
* [[Islamic sexual jurisprudence]]
* [[LGBT in the Middle East]]
* [[LGBT in the Ottoman Empire]]
* [[Inclusive Mosque Initiative]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
{{divcol}}
* {{Cite book |last=Birdal |first=Mehmet Sinan |year=2020 |chapter=The State of Being LGBT in the Age of Reaction: Post-2011 Visibility and Repression in the Middle East and North Africa |editor1-last=Bosia |editor1-first=Michael J. |editor2-last=McEvoy |editor2-first=Sandra M. |editor3-last=Rahman |editor3-first=Momin|display-editors=1 |title=The Oxford Handbook of Global LGBT and Sexual Diversity Politics |location=[[Oxford]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190673741.013.16 |isbn=9780190673741}}
* {{Cite book|last=Dialmy|first=Abdessamad|title=Which Sex Education for Young Muslims?|publisher=World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists|year=2010|url=http://xa.yimg.com/kq/groups/14368256/413849807/name/Which|access-date=22 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303174200/http://xa.yimg.com/kq/groups/14368256/413849807/name/Which|archive-date=3 March 2016|url-status=dead}}
* {{in lang|de}} Georg Klauda: ''Die Vertreibung aus dem Serail. Europa und die Heteronormierung der islamischen Welt.'' [[Männerschwarm Verlag]], Hamburg 2008, {{ISBN|978-3-939542-34-6}}. [https://books.google.com/books?id=MD4qAgAAQBAJ&q=Die+Vertreibung+aus+dem+Serail%3A+Europa+und+die+Heteronormalisierung+der+islamischen+Welt See pages at] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170311160527/https://books.google.com/books?id=MD4qAgAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=Die+Vertreibung+aus+dem+Serail:+Europa+und+die+Heteronormalisierung+der+islamischen+Welt&hl=en&sa=X&ei=CmmrU-yTAci7O-T1gegM&ved=0CCAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Die%20Vertreibung%20aus%20dem%20Serail%3A%20Europa%20und%20die%20Heteronormalisierung%20der%20islamischen%20Welt&f=false |date=2017-03-11 }} [[Google Books]].
* {{Cite book|last1=Schmitt|first1=Arno|last2=Sofer|first2=Jehoeda|title=Sexuality and Eroticism among Males in Muslim Societies|publisher=Haworth Press|year=1992|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Kw_BVSVmNsUC&q=Sexuality+and+eroticism+among+males+in+Moslem+societies|isbn=9781560240471|access-date=2020-10-02|archive-date=2023-04-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419034027/https://books.google.com/books?id=Kw_BVSVmNsUC&q=Sexuality+and+eroticism+among+males+in+Moslem+societies|url-status=live}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Schmitt |first=Arno |title=Liwat im Fiqh: Männliche Homosexualität? |journal=Journal of Arabic and Islamic Studies |volume=IV |date=2001–2002 |url=http://www.uib.no/jais/content4.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110906123507/http://www.uib.no/jais/content4.htm |archive-date=6 September 2011 }}
* {{Cite book|last1=Van Jivraj|first1=Suhraiya|last2=de Jong|first2=Anisa|title=Muslim Moral Instruction on Homosexuality|publisher=Yoesuf Foundation Conference on Islam in the West and Homosexuality – Strategies for Action|year=2001|url=https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:KjIohrD0R-AJ:www.safraproject.org/Reports/Muslim_Moral_Instruction_on_Homosexuality.pdf+Islam,+Homosexuality+and+Migration&hl=km&gl=kh&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESi8Wm3zisCleP-UN8czw5a7tpJLFe2ekZJF6ccbenXhff2ub-0SP0uu-fIfZvZBmHiuZ6vVJfYvaxtkKcxiMSQV-p_WTdlSR_wOVD0XVZznB9RJgtgWUUEOQNlfd8jgYiPqL4U0&sig=AHIEtbTAKkG0EQImULQIOH5QsnBAyVuR_w|access-date=2016-11-09|archive-date=2017-02-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202084025/https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:KjIohrD0R-AJ:www.safraproject.org/Reports/Muslim_Moral_Instruction_on_Homosexuality.pdf+Islam,+Homosexuality+and+Migration&hl=km&gl=kh&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESi8Wm3zisCleP-UN8czw5a7tpJLFe2ekZJF6ccbenXhff2ub-0SP0uu-fIfZvZBmHiuZ6vVJfYvaxtkKcxiMSQV-p_WTdlSR_wOVD0XVZznB9RJgtgWUUEOQNlfd8jgYiPqL4U0&sig=AHIEtbTAKkG0EQImULQIOH5QsnBAyVuR_w|url-status=live}}
* {{cite book|author-link=Khalid Duran|last=Duran|first=Khalid|chapter=Homosexuality in Islam|editor-last=Swidler|editor-first=Anne |title=Homosexuality and World Religions|date=1993|publisher=Trinity Press International|location=Valley Forge, Pennsylvania|isbn=1-56338-051-X}}
* Kilgerman, Nicole (2007). ''Homosexuality in Islam: A Difficult Paradox''. [[Macalester Islam Journal]] 2(3):52–64, Berkeley Electronic press.
* Luongo, Michael (ed.), ''Gay Travels in the Muslim World'' Haworth Press, 2007. {{ISBN|978-1-56023-340-4}}.
* {{Cite book |last=Rahman |first=Momin |year=2020 |chapter=Queer Muslim Challenges to the Internationalization of LGBT Rights: Decolonizing International Relations Methodology through Intersectionality |editor1-last=Bosia |editor1-first=Michael J. |editor2-last=McEvoy |editor2-first=Sandra M. |editor3-last=Rahman |editor3-first=Momin |title=The Oxford Handbook of Global LGBT and Sexual Diversity Politics |location=[[Oxford]] and [[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190673741.013.27 |isbn=9780190673741}}
* Everett K. Rowson, J.W. Wright (eds.), ''Homoeroticism in Classical Arabic Literature'' New York, 1997
* Arno Schmitt and Gianni de Martino, ''[[Kleine Schriften]] zu zwischenmännlicher Sexualität und Erotik in der muslimischen Gesellschaft'', Berlin, Gustav-Müller-Str. 10 : A. Schmitt, 1985
* Vincenzo Patanè, "Homosexuality in the Middle East and North Africa" in: Aldrich, Robert (ed.) ''Gay Life and Culture: A World History'', Thames & Hudson, London, 2006
* [Pellat, Charles.] "Liwat". ''Encyclopedia of Islam''. New edition. Vol. 5. Leiden: Brill, 1986. pp.&nbsp;776–79.
* The [[Huffington Post]] has eighteen article about LGBT Muslims at [https://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/lgbt-muslims/ LGBT Muslims Articles] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160818183058/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/lgbt-muslims/ |date=2016-08-18 }}
{{divcol end}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Homosexuality and Islam}}
* [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLE3saqAXcc3ahCLB4FWqyd7XAJ_Lh72IZ LGBTQI Lecture Series] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200626112434/https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLE3saqAXcc3ahCLB4FWqyd7XAJ_Lh72IZ |date=2020-06-26 }} – [[Muslims for Progressive Values]] lecture series on homophobia in Muslim communities
* [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/DJI7D5hU-mU BBC3 'Free Speech' 'Can you be Gay and Muslim?' Maajid Nawaz vs Abdullah al Andalusi] – [[BBC3]]'s "Gay and Muslim" debate between [[Maajid Nawaz]] and Abdullah al Andalusi
* {{Cite thesis| last = Kotb| first = H. G.| title = Sexuality in Islam| date = 2004| url=http://www2.hu-berlin.de/sexology/GESUND/ARCHIV/kotb2.htm| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110709125251/http://www2.hu-berlin.de/sexology/GESUND/ARCHIV/kotb2.htm| archive-date=2011-07-09}}
* {{cite web |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=LGBTQI Resources |url=https://www.mpvusa.org/lgbtqi-resources |url-status=live |date=2021 |website=www.mpvusa.org |location=[[Los Angeles]] |publisher=[[Muslims for Progressive Values]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210819022452/https://www.mpvusa.org/lgbtqi-resources |archive-date=19 August 2021 |access-date=30 October 2021}}

{{Religion and LGBT people}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lgbt Topics And Islam}}
[[Category:Islamic criminal jurisprudence]]
[[Category:Islam-related controversies]]
[[Category:LGBTQ and Islam| ]]
[[Category:LGBTQ-related controversies]]
[[Category:Sharia|Homosexuality, Islamic views of]]