Morocco teens held for kissing photo on Facebook Published duration 5 October 2013

image copyright PA

A Moroccan boy and girl have been arrested for posting a photograph of themselves kissing online.

The couple - aged 15 and 14 - had their picture taken outside their school by a 15-year-old friend outside their school in the north-eastern town of Nador and posted it on the social networking site Facebook.

They were held for violating public decency after a local newspaper printed the photo, causing a public outcry. A complaint lodged with the police resulted in an investigation.

The three are due to appear before a juvenile court next week.

The issue has also been taken up by preachers in several mosques in Nador. They have urged parents to keep a closer eye on their children to prevent a repetition.

Ibtissame Lachgar, co-founder of the Alternative Movement for Individual Liberties (MALI) has launched a campaign to post one million copycat photos online in support of the teenagers.

She has posted online a photo of herself kissing a male fellow activist.

Comments on the case on Facebook and Twitter vary wildly. Some decry the police's response, urging them to focus on more serious crimes.

Others accuse society of hypocrisy for castigating a young couple for copying what they see on TV.

Other internet users have called the couple names. A few blame the couple's parents for failing to teach them well.