Two men were publicly flogged in Indonesia's Aceh province after an Islamic Shariah court convicted them of engaging in homosexual acts, specifically hugging and kissing, which the court ruled as violations of Islamic law that can lead to banned sexual relations. Aceh is the only region in Indonesia that enforces a strict version of Sharia law, where gay sex is outlawed, although it remains legal in the rest of the Muslim-majority country. The public caning has drawn international criticism, with human rights organizations condemning it as a state-sanctioned act of discrimination and cruelty. The incident highlights the tension between Aceh's regional autonomy and human rights protections.