Turkey escalates crackdown on LGBTQ+ activists, arrests dozens, targets associations

Turkish authorities have arrested dozens of LGBTQ+ activists and moved to shut down associations on charges of promoting 'obscenity' and 'perversion,' despite homosexuality being legal since 1858. This marks an escalation in state repression against the community, likely aimed at consolidating conservative support and diverting attention from economic woes. The move signals a further deterioration of civil liberties in Turkey and may strain relations with Western allies.