Turkish college student threatened with ISIS-style execution for promoting LGBT+ rights

A university student promoting an upcoming lecture on LGBT+ rights was threatened online to be thrown off a tall building, a method of execution used by the Islamic State (ISIS) militant group against people deemed members of the LGBT+ community, Birgün newspaper reported on Saturday.

Nazli Ikra Öztay, a political sciences student at Ankara University, received the threat on Whatsapp after she announced an event called “LGBTI+ rights struggle on campus” to other groups involving university students on the popular messaging app.

“I was confronted with a private message saying, ‘Delete that immoral message’,” Öztay told Birgün, adding that her friend received a similar message.

“Delete that message and do not again make the (Whatsapp) group a grounds for your depravity again,” the message to Öztay said. “We'll never get used to it, and we'll throw you off tall buildings."

ISIS frequently uses the method of throwing people from the high buildings, posting images of such executions of LGBT+ individuals on social media in recent years.

Öztay said after some investigating, she and her friend learned the message was a freshman from the Political Sciences department in the university who was a member of a jihadist gang, living in Syria “from time to time”.

A women’s rights group on campus, Mülkiye Women’s Solidarity, issued a statement in support for Öztay against the online threat.

“We remind you again; none of our female friends, the subject of the LGBTI + struggle or our rights defender friend are alone. We are side by side and strong together against hate language and bullying!” the group tweeted on Friday.

Tekrar hatırlatıyoruz; hiçbir kadın arkadaşımız, LGBTİ+ mücadelesinin öznesi ya da hak savunucusu olan arkadaşımız yalnız değildir. Nefret diline ve zorbalığa karşı yan yanayız ve birlikte güçlüyüz!

— Mülkiye Kadın Dayanışması (@mulkiyekadin) July 10, 2020

Turkey's LGBT+ community has faced considerable hostility under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's Justice and Development Party. Turkish authorities have banned pride celebrations in the past few years citing “security concerns”.