Turkish Authorities Launch “My Family is Safe” Operation, Targeting LGBTQ+ Community
Author: Srijita Mukherjee
September 30, 2026
HRRC expresses concern about the safety of the LGBTQ+ community in Türkiye as the authorities are increasingly targeting them after the government linked reports associating declining birth rates with different sexual orientations. HRRC also condemns the mass detentions of individuals, the extreme use of police force (including tear gas against peaceful protesters), and the blocking of human rights groups accounts. HRRC calls on Turkish authorities to listen to international organizations such as Human Rights Watch and the European Union who urge them to follow human rights standards, release everyone who is detained and create a safe environment for all communities.
![Turkish-language sign at San Francisco Pride 2013. [Image credit: Quinn Dombrowski/Wikimedia Commons]](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/d0bbf9_2c42b210ef964fe487a63117d373d7f4~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_980,h_653,al_c,q_90,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/d0bbf9_2c42b210ef964fe487a63117d373d7f4~mv2.png)
In mid-September, police officers raided several LGBTQ+ and HIV advocacy groups in Istanbul. On September 15, during protests against these raids, over 150 people, including journalists, were arrested. Türkiye's justice minister, Akın Gürlek, explained that the raids and arrests were to “protect our children, the institution of the family and the social order”. This operation is called “My Family is Safe”, and it aims to target venues believed to be involved in prostitution and activities that could expose children to “obscene material”.
A video released by the Turkish interior ministry portrays police searching through files and cabinets, taking down rainbow flags and arresting activists. The video portrayed the raids as targeting criminal activity, showing what officials claimed to be digital equipment, drugs, and a firearm. As a result, 62 people were held in custody but more than 100 were detained. Emma Sinclair-Webb from Human Rights Watch declared this was “the widest crackdown on LGBTQ+ people” in recent years.
The Turkish authorities have blocked access to social media accounts of various LGBTQ+ groups. This also includes accounts such as Amnesty International Türkiye, the Evrensel newspaper, the Academics for Peace initiative and the Lawyers for Justice association. The Public Prosecutor’s Office in Bakirkoy stated that the suspensions are important and part of an investigation into the accounts that speak of "obscene content and LGBTQ+ propaganda."
Akın Gürlek clarified that the “My Family is Safe” operation was launched by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to address “weakening” family ties. Gürlek stated that family bonds were withering due to low fertility rates and rising divorce rates. Erdoğan blamed the LGBTQ+ community for the declining birth rate. Sinclair-Webb pointed out that Türkiye has a concerning record regarding domestic violence, including numerous cases of child abuse and murders of women. She emphasised that, in order to protect children and families, LGBTQ+ individuals should not be targeted.
Sinclair-Webb said that the actions taken might be an attempt to criminalise the LGBTQ+ community by conflating it with people involved in drug and prostitution-related offenses. These initial raids led to protests. Protesters held banners outside a courthouse in Istanbul saying “Being LGBTQ+ is not a crime” and chanted “Long live the struggle for freedom.” Turkish authorities responded by conducting nationwide arrests, including using tear gas against hundreds of protestors in Izmir and detaining at least 150 people in Istanbul, with more arrested in Ankara.
The Commissioner for Human Rights at the Council of Europe, Michael O'Flaherty, expressed concern regarding the recent arrests and raids targeting LGBTQ+ civil society organisations and human rights activists across Türkiye.
According to DW news, 120 women's rights organisations signed a joint declaration in support of the Turkish LGBTQ+ community. They argue that neither being part of the LGBTQ+ community nor organizing demonstrations is a crime. Yildiz Taghizade, advocacy officer at Women for Women's Human Rights (WWHR), opposed the government's attempt to criminalize the LGBTQ+ community. Taghizade further explains that the government has targeted people of the community for many years in an effort to stop them from engaging in politics and claiming their rights.
The Turkish Medical Association has criticized the government for violating human rights. It is calling for an end to the discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. Erkan Bas, head of the Turkish Workers' Party, has also demanded the release of those who were arrested and criticized the government for using forceful measures to silence opposition.
Michael O'Flaherty said he would continue to watch the situation closely. Commission Spokesperson Christian Wigand stated that Türkiye, as an EU accession candidate, must ensure that all its citizens respect the human rights and dignity of everyone because discrimination and stigmatization “are contrary to the values of the union.”
Glossary
Accession: the act or process by which someone rises to a position of honor or power.
Contrary: a fact or condition incompatible with another.
Crackdown: a situation in which someone starts to deal with bad or illegal behaviour in a more severe way.
Detain: to hold or keep in or as if in custody
Dignity: the quality or state of being worthy of honor or respect.
Discrimination: the act, practice, or an instance of unfairly treating a person or group differently from other people or groups on a class or categorical basis (such as race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation)
Launch: to put into operation or set in motion.
Obscene: disgusting to the senses
Operation: performance of a practical work or of something involving the practical application of principles or processes.
Raid: a sudden invasion by officers of the law
Sexual orientation: a person's sexual identity or self-identification as bisexual, straight, gay, pansexual, etc. : the state of being bisexual, straight, gay, pansexual, etc.
Social Order: the totality of structured human interrelationships in a society or a part of it.
Tear gas: a solid, liquid, or gaseous substance that on dispersion in the atmosphere irritates mucous membranes resulting especially in blinding of the eyes with tears and that is used chiefly (as by the police and the military) to disperse large crowds of people.
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