Security and public order
The headless, mutilated body of a gay Syrian man has been identified by gay housemates in Istanbul who say he had been gang-raped previously.
The friends of Muhammad Wisam Sankari told a Turkish gay rights group, kaosgl.org, that they had been threatened by violent male gangs.
“I am so scared,” one of them said.
Mr Sankari, a refugee, arrived in Istanbul a year ago. His body was found in Yenikapi, a central district, on 25 July. No arrests have been made.
He was trying to get out of Turkey because his life was in danger.
In June, Turkish police fired rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse gay activists who tried to hold an LGBT rally in Istanbul, despite a ban on the Gay Pride parade.
Homosexuality is illegal in many countries in the Middle East and although it is not against the law in Turkey, analysts say homophobia remains widespread.
Allah hates fags, no doubt – and as for dykes –
The Turkish authorities cited “safeguarding security and public order” as the reason for banning Gay Pride in Istanbul this year. The parade was also banned last year.
Assaults on LGBT people in Turkey have mostly been blamed on ultra-conservative Muslims and an ultra-nationalist youth group, the Alperen Hearths.
The harassment is also related to a rise in homophobic rhetoric in conservative media and social media, Cagil Kasapoglu [of the BBC Turkish Service] says.
Yeah we get that here too.
