February 17, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – A U.K. group that describes itself as representing “LGBTQI Muslims” has announced that the first-ever “Muslim Pride” event will take place in London in April.

�������� SHARE SHARE SHARE! It’s happening! We’ve set the date for the first EVER Muslim Pride event. Tickets go on sale in two weeks! #LGBTHM20 pic.twitter.com/3Qo5U9vOPF — Imaan LGBTQI (@ImaanLGBTQ) February 11, 2020

The group organizing the event, Imaan, says that “LGBTQI Muslims often find ourselves isolated, without community and frequently facing homophobic, biphobic, transphobic AND Islamaphobic abuse.”

5 Pillars UK, an Islamic online news agency, notes that the event has been organized “despite Islam’s strict prohibition on homosexuality.” The news agency adds that the “practice and promotion of homosexuality is considered a major sin in Islam by all mainstream schools of thought.”

Some Muslim countries, such as Iran, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Yemen, punish active homosexuals with jail, flogging, and even the death penalty.

The Daily Mail reports that the Imaan group has received “a slew of negative tweets from online trolls” after posting the event to its social media sites. But the group has not been deterred and is responding to negative responses online with the hashtag “Islamophobia.”

On its website, Imaan responds to the idea that homosexuality is considered a sin in Islam by citing a 2003 letter co-signed by two Muslim imams, written in support of Rowan Williams, then archbishop of Canterbury (Church of England), after he suggested that same-sex relationships need not always be regarded as sinful.