Turkish authorities conducted coordinated early-morning raids in multiple cities, detaining dozens and searching offices linked to LGBTQ+ and HIV support groups. Justice Minister Akin Gurlek said 162 suspects, nine associations and 13 businesses are under investigation, citing child and family protection under a presidential executive order. Human rights groups called the operations political and warned that broad charges risk criminalizing an entire community. The moves fit a broader pattern of heightened pressure on LGBTQ+ organizations in recent years.
Turkey Launches Coordinated Raids on LGBTQ+ and HIV Support Groups, Dozens Detained
FILE - People run from the police during a march in support of transgender people and their rights during the LGBTQ Pride week, in Istanbul, Turkey, on June 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Dilara Acikgoz, File)
Turkish security forces carried out coordinated early-morning raids on multiple LGBTQ+ and HIV support organizations, detaining dozens and searching association offices and popular meeting places, officials and rights groups said.
The operations began at about 1 a.m. on Sunday and were reported in several major cities, including Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Aydin and Mersin. Authorities said the probe covers 162 suspects, nine associations and 13 businesses.
Justice Minister Akin Gurlek framed the actions as measures to "protect children, the institution of the family, and public order," linking them to a 10-year presidential executive order on families and children. He warned that the state will not tolerate "criminal organizations, abuse networks or illegal activity which targets children, youths or families."
Officials said the raids targeted current and former members of several well-known LGBTQ+ rights and HIV-awareness groups and that some organizations' websites were blocked during the operation. The ministry also alleged that several associations received notable funding from international sources.
Human Rights Association: "This is not a judicial investigation; it is a political operation aimed at forcing society into a monolithic family model and purging LGBTI+ and independent civil society under the guise of protecting the family and children."
Rights groups have expressed alarm that authorities included broad allegations—such as forming a criminal organization, drug offenses, prostitution and obscenity—that risk criminalizing entire communities rather than exposing specific wrongdoing.
The raids come amid rising anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). Istanbul Pride has been banned since 2015 and Pride gatherings have been dispersed by police in subsequent years. Earlier this year, an LGBTQ+ cruise ship that routinely tours the Mediterranean and previously docked in Turkey was denied permission to call at Turkish ports.
Although the Ottoman Empire decriminalized homosexuality in 1858, social discrimination against LGBTQ+ people remains widespread in Turkey. Observers say the recent actions should be seen in the context of heightened political tensions ahead of national elections and increasing pressure on independent civil society organizations.
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