Human Rights Foundation of Turkey Documentation Center[1][2][3][4][5]
15 September 2026 Daily Human Rights Report
(09/085) Police Intervention in Protests in Ankara, Izmir and Istanbul…
It has emerged that, during a march held in Izmir on 14 September 2026 in relation to the operations carried out by the Ministry of Justice against LGBTI+ individuals, associations and organisations—dubbed ‘My Family is Safe’—the police did not permit the carrying of banners and LGBTI+ flags. At the conclusion of the press conference held after the march, the police intervened using tear gas and physical force, resulting in the detention of two people, one of whom was a lawyer. It was reported that lawyers who went to the Security Branch to speak with those detained were not allowed inside. Those detained were released the same day.
On 15 September 2026, police intervened in a protest held in front of the Çağlayan Courthouse in Istanbul, detaining at least 106 people, including Birgün reporter Sarya Toprak and several lawyers. It was reported that lawyers who went to the Istanbul Provincial Police Directorate were prevented by the police from meeting with those detained for a considerable period of time. The report also noted that the police had recorded statements from those detained regarding allegations of torture and other ill-treatment to which they were subjected during the questioning process.
On 15 September 2026, police intervened in a protest organised on Sakarya Street in the Çankaya district of Ankara at the call of the Ankara Women’s Platform and detained 17 people. Those detained were released on the same day following questioning at the police station.
(09/086) Detentions and Arrests in the Context of Investigations Targeting LGBT+ Individuals, Associations and Organisations…
As part of operations dubbed ‘My Family is Safe’ by the Ministry of Justice, as of 15 September 2026, 31 people in Istanbul—including members and executives of LGBT+ associations; in Ankara, 20 people, including the full and alternate members of the KaosGL Association’s executive and supervisory boards, as well as KaosGL writer and journalist Tuğba Tekerek; and in Mersin, 34 people, including current and former members of the executive boards of LGBTI+ associations, bringing the total number of people detained to at least 85.
As of 15 September 2026, it was reported that of the 31 people detained in Istanbul, two had been released on health and age grounds, whilst 29 remained in custody. It was also reported that, as part of the investigation, police had searched the premises of six associations working in the LGBTI+ and HIV fields in Istanbul.
Of the 20 people detained in Ankara, 13 – including journalist Tuğba Tekerek and association executives – were remanded in custody by the magistrates’ court to which they were referred on 15 September 2026, whilst seven were released subject to judicial supervision. It was reported that a search was carried out at the KaosGL Association’s premises as part of the investigation.
Of the 34 people detained in Mersin, 26 were remanded in custody by the magistrates’ court to which they were referred on 15 September 2026, whilst 8 were released subject to judicial supervision. It has been reported that, as part of the investigation, the premises of the Muamma LGBT+ Education and Solidarity Association and the 7 Renk LGBT+ Solidarity Association were searched by the police.
(09/087) Journalists Prevented from Covering News in Istanbul…
It has emerged that journalists covering the protest held on 15 September 2026 outside Istanbul’s Çağlayan Courthouse regarding the operations carried out by the Ministry of Justice against LGBTI+ individuals, associations and organisations—dubbed ‘My Family is Safe’—were forcibly removed from the area by the police and prevented from carrying out their journalistic duties.
(09/088) Banned Protest in Aydın…
It has been reported that a press conference organised by the Kuşadası City Solidarity Group on 14 September 2026 to protest the arrest of five people in the Kuşadası district of Aydın as part of the operations dubbed “My Family is Safe” by the Ministry of Justice, targeting LGBTI+ individuals, associations and organisations, has been banned by the Kuşadası District Governor’s Office.
(09/089) Journalist Detained in Çanakkale…
Journalist Mehmet Andaç was detained on 14 September 2026 on the grounds of ‘breaching the confidentiality of the investigation’, citing a news report he had written regarding allegations of sexual abuse against children; he was released the same day following questioning at the prosecutor’s office.
(09/090) Political Party Leader and Others Detained as Part of an Istanbul-Based Investigation…
On 15 September 2026, as part of an Istanbul-based investigation, 39 people – including Mertcan Titiz, Co-Chair of the Socialist Reconstruction Party (SYKP) – were detained following house raids carried out in 11 provinces (Istanbul, Ankara, Adana, Antalya, Aydın, Balıkesir, Diyarbakır, Elazığ, Mersin, Muğla and Urfa). The grounds for the detentions remain unknown.
(09/091) The Trial of a Journalist in Hatay…
In a case brought before the Hatay Heavy Penal Court No. 2 against journalist Burcu Özkaya, on the grounds of a news report she had written regarding the Turkish Armed Forces’ (TSK) ‘Operation Peace Spring’ in Syria, she was sentenced to 1 year and 3 months’ imprisonment for the offence of ‘making organisation propaganda’, with the pronouncement of the sentence suspended (HAGB). Following a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) that this constituted a violation of freedom of the press and freedom of expression, the case was reheard, and the final hearing took place on 15 September 2026. The court ruled that the case should be dismissed on the grounds that the five-year probation period had expired.
(09/092) The Trial of a Journalist in Istanbul…
The trial of journalist Nadiye Gürbüz, brought before Istanbul Heavy Penal Court No. 25, commenced on 15 September 2026. The indictment seeks the journalist’s conviction on the charge of ‘membership of an organisation’. The court ruled that Nadiye Gürbüz should remain in custody and adjourned the hearing until 8 December 2026.
Nadiye Gürbüz was detained on 3 February 2026 and remanded in custody on 5 February 2026.
(09/093) The Özgür Gündem Case…
Erol Önderoğlu, the Turkey Representative of Reporters Without Borders (RSF), has spoken out regarding writer Ahmet Nesin and Prof. Dr. Şebnem Korur Fincancı – former Chair of the Central Council of the Turkish Medical Association (TTB) and a member of the Board of Directors of the Turkish Human Rights Foundation (TİHV) – who were charged in a case brought before the Istanbul Heavy Penal Court No. 13 for participating in the “Rotating Editor-in-Chief” campaign in support of the Özgür Gündem newspaper, which had been closed down by an emergency decree. Following the overturning of the acquittal ruling by the Criminal Chamber No. 3 of the Istanbul Heavy Penal Court No. 13 on 1 November 2020, the retrial resumed on 15 September 2026. The indictment seeks the conviction of three individuals on charges of “incitement to commit a crime”, “glorifying a crime and a criminal” and “spreading organisation propaganda”. The court adjourned the hearing until 24 December 2026.
(09/094) Intervention Against Journalists Covering News in Bursa…
According to press reports on 15 September 2026, it emerged that on 10 September 2026, S TV reporter Oğuz Aksu and his cameraman, who were covering the first session of the Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Council for September, were forcibly removed from the council chamber on the instructions of the Director of the Private Office.
[1]The reports on the human rights violations of the Documentation Center are claims unless they are certified. The claim of violation either is certified through thoroughly investigations of HRFT Documentation Center, including by judicial verdicts, and becomes a definite data or it is not included to the annual report.
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[5] Daily Human Rights Reports are prepared on the information gathered by the Documentation Center from its own network and the following dailies and internet portals: Vatan, Milliyet, Hürriyet, Habertürk, Evrensel, Birgün, Cumhuriyet, Fırat Haber Ajansı, Jinnews, ETHA, Mezopotamya Ajansı, Yurt, Yeni Yaşam, NTV, Yeni Asya, Bianet, Halkinsesi.tv, Cnnturk, Tr724, İleri Haber, Siyasi Haber, Alınteri, Kızılbayrak, Sendika.org, Yüksekova Haber, T24, Diken, Gazete Karınca, Gazete Duvar. Haber Sol, El Cezire, BBC, Deutsche Welle, Reuters, AFP.