Human Rights Watch reports that Turkish police arrested at least 209 people in Ankara in overnight raids on June 22–23, 2026, ahead of the NATO summit scheduled there for July 7–8. Those detained included political activists, lawyers, an academic, and a journalist known as a prominent LGBT rights advocate. Authorities cited efforts to counter “terrorist organizations,” linking the arrests to leftist groups and ISIS without offering specifics. The day before the raids, Ankara’s governor banned all public assemblies and demonstrations from June 28 to July 10, citing summit security.

HRW characterized the crackdown as part of a broader pattern of repression in Türkiye, pointing to restrictions on the main opposition party, the prosecution of journalists, and the blocking of social media accounts belonging to LGBT and women’s rights groups. The organization’s deputy Europe and Central Asia director argued the use of terrorism laws to silence people contradicts NATO’s founding values, and called on the alliance’s members to press Turkish authorities to permit peaceful expression and assembly. (An update notes that of 225 people arrested on June 23, courts ordered 178 into pretrial detention and 34 into house arrest.)

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