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Radio France Internationale
Radio France Internationale
World
RFI

Turkey arrests dozens in ongoing crackdown on LGBTQI+ groups

A protester holds a placard reading, "If changing gender is a crime, then this body is a crime scene," during a demonstration against the Turkish government's crackdown on LGBTQ+ groups in Ankara on 15 September 2026.
A protester holds a placard reading, "If changing gender is a crime, then this body is a crime scene," during a demonstration against the Turkish government's crackdown on LGBTQ+ groups in Ankara on 15 September 2026. REUTERS - Efekan Akyuz

A crackdown on LGBTQI+ groups in Turkey escalated on Tuesday as authorities made dozens of new arrests and police detained protesters in Istanbul and Ankara, following days of raids, arrests and online restrictions across the country.

At least 31 people were arrested pending trial on Tuesday as part of the operation. They included five transgender women in Ankara and 26 people in the southern province of Mersin.

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