Turkey says news site closed for 'LGBTQ propaganda'

Turkey's justice ministry said Wednesday a court had shut down the website and social media accounts of T24, a leading independent digital news website, citing its "LGBT propaganda".

Members of press organisations hold slogans as they protest against the arrest of Turkish journalist Tolga Sardan, who writes for the news outlet T24, in front of the T24 office in Ankara on November 2, 2023. Photo by ADEM ALTAN / AFP

The move came several weeks after authorities launched a major crackdown on the LGBTQ community, raiding gay bars, nightclubs and the homes of activists and community members with warrants for 162 people.

"As part of the 'My Family is Safe' investigation... the website and social media accounts of online news portal T24, which has produced 118 pieces of content constituting LGBT propaganda over the past year, have been shut down," the justice ministry said in a statement.

Turkey's LGBTQ community has increasingly come under pressure from the authorities. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has described it as a "deviant movement" of "perverts".

Source: Citizen Digital