Türkiye Raids LGBTQ+ Venues in 'My Family is Safe' Operations

Turkish police and gendarmerie raided homes, association offices, bars and other venues linked to the LGBTQ+ community beginning around 1 a.m. on Sunday, September 13, 2026. The operations, titled "My Family is Safe," covered Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Aydin, Mersin and further provinces. Justice Minister Akin Gurlek said legal proceedings had been launched against 162 suspects, nine associations and 13 companies. Multiple wire and social posts reported 26 people taken into custody. Kaos GL said its office was searched and more than 10 of its members were detained. Police broke into association offices and raided popular hangouts and gay bars in Istanbul and Ankara. Gurlek said the investigation was meant to "protect children, the institution of the family, and public order," tying it to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Decade of the Family initiative on birth rates and family values. Prosecutors cited obscenity, Associations Law violations, prostitution and offenses against public morality. An Istanbul court ordered access restrictions on websites and social media accounts of Kaos GL and groups including Velvele, Özgür Renkler, Queer Adana, LİSTAG and university LGBT clubs at Boğaziçi and Bilkent; 14 X accounts were made inaccessible in Turkey, with additional Instagram accounts included. The Istanbul Attorney General's office said operations spanned 12 provinces targeting 38 suspects and that authorities seized drugs, digital devices, smuggled liquor and a gun, while Gurlek cited a 15-province scope. The wire summary stated LGBTQ+ advocates and opposition politicians condemned the actions as state discrimination and intimidation, noting same-sex relations are not criminalized in Türkiye. Authorities did not release one consolidated arrest total beyond the Gurlek, Kaos GL and wire figures.