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Law enforcement agencies in Turkey have carried out a broad, coordinated series of raids targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer advocacy groups, community venues, and private residences, culminating in the detention of dozens of individuals. The sweeping security operations, conducted across multiple urban hubs over the weekend, signal a sharp intensification of the state's prolonged campaign against LGBTQ community organisations and their leadership.
The coordinated police actions took place on Sunday, with officers simultaneously raiding properties across major metropolitan areas, including Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, and Mersin. Security personnel entered the headquarters of advocacy organisations, private dwellings of prominent activists, and several commercial entertainment venues, including gay bars and nightclubs, as part of a centralized operation.
According to figures published by the state-run Anadolu news agency and attributed to chief prosecutors across Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir, at least 63 individuals were formally taken into custody during the initial hours of the sweep. Additional reports indicated that police had arrested at least 60 people as part of the broader administrative and judicial crackdown, with detentions continuing to mount as proceedings advanced.
Providing official confirmation of the legal scope behind the operation, Turkish Justice Minister Akin Gurlek announced via social media that judicial authorities had launched formal inquiries into a vast network of individuals and entities. The state investigation currently encompasses 162 targeted suspects, along with nine civic associations and 13 commercial businesses located throughout the country.
The Justice Minister stated that the multi-city security operation had been initiated under the legal banner of safeguarding children, reinforcing the institution of the family, and preserving public order. Gurlek asserted that the government’s actions were intended to enforce constitutional mandates that require state authorities to shield youths and traditional domestic units from perceived societal threats.
The current legal offensive, formally branded by the government as the "My Family is Safe" operation, is closely aligned with a broader executive strategy spearheaded by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. This initiative, titled the "Decade of Family and Population," is a ten-year executive policy designed by the presidency to tackle demographic shifts and counter declining birthrates across Turkey by promoting traditional family structures.
In a public statement posted on the social media platform X, Gurlek reiterated the administration's uncompromising stance regarding the targeted groups. The Justice Minister wrote that the state holds a constitutional duty to protect families and children, emphasizing that no criminal entity, abuse network, or illicit activity perceived as threatening Turkish youths or family institutions would be permitted to operate.
The aggressive police raids were preceded by administrative digital measures aimed at cutting off the public communication channels of the targeted organizations. Prior to the weekend arrests, Turkish authorities moved to systematically block access to the websites of several prominent LGBTQ rights organisations as well as groups dedicated to raising HIV awareness.
Among the prominent civil society organizations directly hit by the raids was the longtime advocacy group Kaos GL. Law enforcement officials carried out extensive searches of the organization’s offices, confiscating materials and taking several key figures into custody during the Sunday sweep.
According to statements released by Kaos GL, nearly 50 human rights defenders associated with LGBTQ advocacy have either been formally detained or placed under ongoing legal proceedings that involve intensive judicial interrogations and detention orders. The group revealed that its staff members, along with former and current affiliates of allied human rights initiatives, are facing mounting judicial pressure.
Judicial authorities based in the capital city of Ankara have leveled specific criminal allegations against Kaos GL, accusing the organisation of disseminating obscene online content. Prosecutors claimed in their legal filings that the group had published digital posts containing obscenity that remained accessible to underage internet users, utilizing these allegations as justification for the headquarters raid and subsequent arrests.
The widespread operation marks a significant escalation in what rights monitors describe as a decade-long pattern of escalating official hostility and legal restrictions aimed at the Turkish LGBTQ community. For years, authorities have routinely curtailed the activities of these groups, including enforcing repeated annual bans on public demonstrations such as the Istanbul Pride March.
The aggressive nature of the police sweep has triggered sharp condemnation from domestic civil rights advocates and independent human rights monitors. The Turkish Human Rights Association strongly denounced the government's rhetoric in a statement published on X, arguing that the operation’s official title masked an agenda of state-led discrimination, intimidation tactics, and a concerted effort to dismantle independent civil society across the nation.
International observers have likewise expressed alarm over the weekend's events, warning of the broader implications for the rule of law and civic freedoms within the country. Nacho Sanchez Amor, the European Parliament’s rapporteur on Turkey, publicly condemned the widespread detentions, characterizing the coordinated raids and arrests as a shocking escalation in state-directed repression against vulnerable groups and civil organizations.
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