(FILES) People gather outside Istanbul's courthouse behind a banner reading "Being LGBT+ and organising are not a crime. Let our friends be released" during a demonstration to protest over the arrest and growing targeting of LGBTQ activists, in Istanbul on September 15, 2026, two days after police carried out sweeping nationwide raids, arresting dozens of people in a campaign the government said was aimed at promoting traditional family values. Turkish police arrested dozens of people on September 13 in gay bars and at the homes of LGBTQ activists on charges including "obscenity", "assisting prostitution" and having "financial links abroad". Authorities have blocked social media accounts belonging to human rights defenders and media outlets as part of operations dubbed "My Family Is Safe.". Yildiz Tar, an LGBT activist who has already been imprisoned twice, is adamant. By launching a wide-ranging crackdown on the Turkish LGBT community a week ago, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan "kicked off his election campaign" for the 2028 presidential election. (Photo by Ozan KOSE / AFP via Getty Images)