LGBTI+s attacked, harassed in İstanbul's Kadıköy

Photo: Sendika.org

Click to read the article in Turkish / Kurdish

LGBTI+s in the Yeldeğirmeni quarter in İstanbul's Asian-side district of Kadıköy said they were attacked and harassed by a group of men.

On Friday (July 21), a man threatened four LGBTI+s who were walking to their homes and attacked them with a water pipe that he ripped off from a building, Sendika.org reported.

While they managed to take the iron pipe away from the attacker, several men came in support of the men and attacked the four LGBTI+s.

When LGBTI+s gathered in Yeldeğirmeni to read out a statement about the issue the next day, they faced a police blockade, with a group of people behind the officers threatening and insulting them.

They decided to disperse after considering the risk of an attack by the police and "fascist mobs," the LGBTI+s said in a statement they sent to the media.

The assailants swore at them and said "I will wipe out all the faggots," according to the statement.

"Our solution against these gang members who hid in streets in the neighborhood to catch us one by one was unity. We see that this solution is the only thing that can save us from the dark clouds we pass under," said the statement.

During the incidents, it said, some residents and shopkeepers helped them while others only watched the attack or supported the attackers. (EMK/VK)