Image caption The first gay wedding can be held on 28 May - 10 days after Mr Hollande signed the bill 
 
 France's president has signed into law a controversial bill making the country the ninth in Europe, and 14th globally, to legalise gay marriage. They say there are thousands of couples waiting to get married, and thousands of children being brought up in gay households who will now have the full protection of the law. Opponents have staged huge and often violent demonstrations against the bill and have called yet another protest on May 26. It said the interest of the child would be paramount in adoption cases, cautioning that legalising same-sex adoption would not automatically mean the "right to a child". Unlike former president Francois Mitterrand's abolition of the death penalty, which most French people opposed at the time, polls showed more than half the country backed gay marriage.  PARIS: France became the 14th country to legalise same-sex marriage on Saturday after President Francois Hollande signed the measure into law following months of bitter political debate and protests. Here is a breakdown of nations with similar laws on the books: 
 
 - Netherlands: On April 1, 2001 the Netherlands became the first country in the world to legalise same-sex marriage, with the same rights as heterosexuals. The leader of opposition to gay marriage, a political activist and humorist who goes under the name of Frigide Barjot, has said the protest would draw millions into the streets.
– French President Francois Hollande fulfilled a major campaign promise today by signing into law a measure legalizing gay marriage, reports Reuters. The first same-sex weddings can be held in 10 days, notes the BBC. Opponents in the heavily Catholic country aren't done protesting the move, however, and plan another demonstration on May 26. France becomes the 14th country to allow gay marriages, and Dawn.com rounds up the others: Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Canada, South Africa, Norway, Sweden, Portugal, Iceland, Argentina, Denmark, Uruguay, and New Zealand. (In the US, Minnesota recently became the 12th state to legalize it.)