Turkish authorities launch sweeping crackdown on LGBTQ+ community

Turkish authorities have initiated a wide-ranging crackdown on the LGBTQ+ community, arresting and detaining hundreds of journalists, campaigners, HIV organizations, and members of the public. The government and its supporters have emphasized the importance of protecting family values, framing the LGBTQ+ community as an obstruction to these ideals.

Turkish Justice Minister Akin Gurlek announced that over 160 individuals and organizations have been charged with offenses including obscenity, aiding prostitution, and having financial ties abroad. This operation, dubbed the "My Family is Safe" initiative, targeted five provinces and extended to 15 provinces nationwide. Kaos GL, Turkey's leading LGBTQ+ organization, faced 21 arrests as part of this investigation.

Journalist Tugba Tekerek was detained for a single article she wrote about LGBTQ+ life in Georgia. Yildiz Tar, Kaos GL's editor-in-chief, described the crackdown as unprecedented and emphasized that the government is attempting to portray LGBTQ+ individuals as a threat to family values. Homosexuality is not illegal in Turkey, but the ruling Justice and Development Party has been increasingly hostile towards the LGBTQ+ community in recent years.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared 2026 as the "Decade of the Family," which likely influenced the timing of this crackdown. In response, over 150 people protested outside Istanbul's Caglayan courthouse, chanting "Long live life in defiance of hate." International organizations and Turkish human rights associations have condemned this anti-LGBTQ+ crackdown.