How Istanbul Is Weathering Its Biggest Wave of Anti-LGBT Raids and Standing Up to Police Abuse

In September 2026, Turkey saw an unprecedented wave of repression against the LGBTQ+ community. On September 13, Turkish authorities raided the offices of human rights organizations, queer bars, businesses, and private homes across the country, detaining 162 people. Two days later, on September 15, security forces violently dispersed protests against the raids in Istanbul and Ankara, detaining another 126 activists. The crackdown soon extended to journalists covering the police actions.

A journalist with The Independent Gary Nunn, an openly gay man who has visited Turkey every year for the past 20 years, traveled to Istanbul during the traditional “Bear Week” (Bear Week) to document the conditions facing the gay community in the wake of police brutality.

Why are the authorities conducting raids, and what does the “Decade of the Family” have to do with it?

Mass arrests and coercive control have become part of a government campaign called “My Family Is Safe” (My Family is Safe). This initiative was implemented as part of the government’s “Decade of the Family” program, through which the country’s leadership hopes to combat the declining birth rate and protect “public order and family values from indecency.”

Although homosexuality is not officially criminalized in Turkey, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s regime has been systematically intensifying its repressive policies:

• Since 2015 Pride marches have been completely banned in the country.
• The president publicly refers to members of the community as “deviants.”
• In 2012 Turkey withdrew from the Eurovision Song Contest, stating that the competition was incompatible with traditional values (the authorities later cited Conchita Wurst’s 2014 victory as an example).
• In July 2026 ports in Turkey and Egypt refused to accept a specialized cruise liner operated by Atlantis, citing “conduct incompatible with moral values.”

How exactly were the raids on Istanbul’s clubs and hammams carried out?

Police inspections were accompanied by psychological pressure, surveillance, and the closure of certain areas within the venues:

• Ex Bar: At the height of “Bear Week,” the venue was packed with patrons dancing traditional Anatolian circle dances to rock music. However, at 1:00 a.m. the previous Saturday, armed police stormed the bar, checked everyone’s IDs, shut down the venue, and dispersed the guests. A 31-year-old flight attendant Turkish Airlines Ahmet admitted that he had never experienced anything like it before and was deeply shaken.
• Stay Club: At the late-night party featuring go-go dancers, law enforcement officers carried out a similar raid a week ago, checking the IDs of everyone present. When a journalist attempted to take a photo, club staff immediately asked them to put away their phone to prevent anyone from being identified. A patron named Mustafa commented on what happened: “They raided this place last week and checked our passports. It’s purely political—they want to impose Islam on us.”.
• Cheeky Club: The first-floor dance floor remains open, but the second floor, which housed a darkroom for anonymous encounters, was completely shut down following a visit from law enforcement.
• Sahara Bar: At 1:00 a.m. on Saturday, the venue, usually packed with people, was virtually empty—there were only six people inside.
• Firuz Ağa Hamami: A police van remained stationed outside the well-known gay-friendly hammam all night. A tourist from Egypt said that the previous day, law enforcement officers had openly filmed him as he entered the hammam: “The police shut down my favorite club… This was the worst week to visit Istanbul.”.

How is the public responding—from tourists boycotting the city to dancing in defiance of fear?

The authorities’ crackdown has drawn mixed reactions both within the country and abroad.

Some foreign tourists and LGBTQ+ influencers have said they will no longer visit Turkey. Traveler Spencer Macnaughton (Uncloseted Media) noted that while he had no qualms about flying to Istanbul for a hair transplant in 2024, he now “wouldn’t come back here for anything in the world.”

Protests against the crackdown were held abroad, while Lord Michael Cashman raised the issue of protecting the rights of Turkish queer citizens in the UK House of Lords.

Despite the surveillance and fear, many clubs remain packed. Patrons stress that a boycott would only hurt local residents who need solidarity. One Bear Week attendee summed up the mood among partygoers:

“Last week they stormed in here, shone flashlights in our eyes, demanded our IDs, and forced everyone out onto the street. But look around: today, we’re all back.”.