Turkish police detained at least 50 people, including a journalist, on Sunday after LGBTQ+ demonstrators in Istanbul defied an official ban on Pride marches and attempted to gather across several neighbourhoods of the city. Authorities had erected iron barriers around Taksim Square, the symbolic heart of Istanbul and a historic focal point for protest, and banned demonstrations in multiple districts, including Kadıköy on the city's Asian side. Subway services to several central locations were also restricted in an effort to prevent crowds from assembling.
Despite the sweeping security measures, protesters gathered in multiple areas throughout the city and vowed to press on with their demonstrations. "You cannot silence our voices with repression, nor our slogans with bans," organisers declared, adding that they intended to continue taking to the streets. Among those detained was journalist Müberra Ünsal, who holds a valid press card. The Turkish Journalists' Union condemned her arrest, stating she had repeatedly identified herself as a press representative before being taken into custody, and described the interference faced by reporters covering the march as unlawful.
Istanbul's annual Pride march has been almost systematically banned and suppressed since 2015. Homosexuality is not illegal in Turkey, but the LGBTQ+ community faces persistent hostility from the state. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has made repeated homophobic statements over the years, at times blaming the community for the country's declining birth rate. The Istanbul Bar Association offered a visible gesture of solidarity on Sunday, unfurling a large banner from its building on İstiklal Avenue — a central pedestrian thoroughfare — reading: "LGBT is human rights."
The detentions came alongside a separate but related development: Turkish authorities on Saturday ordered an Istanbul gay bar to close, citing unspecified violations, following protests by Islamist groups. The closure followed a social media campaign against a planned LGBTQ+ cruise tour, targeting the bar's owner over his alleged involvement in organising the Turkish leg of the voyage. The cruise operator subsequently cancelled its planned Istanbul stop, according to reports in the Turkish press.
The events underscore the increasingly hostile environment for LGBTQ+ people in Turkey, where civil society organisations and press freedom advocates warn that the space for peaceful assembly and independent journalism continues to narrow. Organisers made clear they do not intend to be deterred, signalling that the stand-off between authorities and the LGBTQ+ community is far from over.