Turkish police raid gay bars and LGBTQI activists' homes

Turkish police have conducted raids on gay bars and the homes of LGBTQI activists, while blocking several social media accounts belonging to LGBTQI organizations. Justice Minister Akin Gürlek announced legal action against 162 suspects, nine organizations, and 13 companies across 15 provinces, including Istanbul and Ankara. The crackdown is part of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's declared "decade of the family," aimed at protecting the family institution and social order. Erdogan has repeatedly described the LGBTQI movement as deviant. The organization Kaos GL reported that more than ten of its members were detained following house searches. Judicial authorities in the capital claimed Kaos GL published "posts with obscene content" accessible to children. On Saturday, social media accounts of several Turkish LGBTQI organizations with thousands of followers were blocked, according to AFP. In June, Turkey blocked about 40 X accounts linked to LGBTQI groups, and last year over 700 government-critical X accounts were blocked at Turkish authorities' request.