Turkey frees 106 protesters as courts keep dozens jailed after LGBTQ raids

Over the weekend Turkish authorities launched raids on LGBTQ venues and the homes of activists in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir and other provinces, naming 162 individuals, nine organisations and 13 companies. Lawyers for Justice reported 109 people detained, and by Wednesday courts had remanded 81 of them. A judge in Istanbul jailed 20 of the 33 appearing before the court, while an Ankara court sentenced 13, including transgender individuals and a journalist.

On Tuesday, police released all 106 protesters detained outside an Istanbul courthouse where activists intended to read a statement denouncing the raids; among them were journalists from BirGün and Germany’s ARD. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the LGBTQ community as a deviant movement, and the justice minister framed the operation as protecting children and the family institution. Rights groups and the European Parliament’s Turkey rapporteur called the crackdown a shocking escalation of repression, as internet blocks on LGBTQ and left-leaning media accounts continued.