Turkish police detain over 50 people in crackdown on Istanbul Pride march

ISTANBUL (AP) – Turkish authorities detained over 50 people attempting to march for Istanbul Pride on Sunday as part of its decade long crackdown on the event.

A heavy police presence in hot spots around the city prevented significant gathering, and the organization had to change the gathering location multiple times.

Yildiz Tar, editor-in-chief of the LGBTQ+ rights organization and the journal Kaos GL, wrote on X that 54 people were detained at Istanbul Pride, including six lawyers. As of Sunday evening, seven had been released and 47 were still in detention.

The Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions of Turkey, or DISK, announced that at least three journalists were among the detained.

“The palace regime will not be able to stay in power by demonizing the LGBTQ community,” said Kezban Konukcu, Member of Parliament from the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party, or DEM, who participated in the event.

Once boasting tens of thousands of participants, Istanbul Pride has been banned since 2015 as the religious conservative Justice and Development Party began playing up to the more conservative elements of its base.