Turkish nationalist group attacks Taksim transgender parade

An ultranationalist group attempted to attack participants in Turkey’s third transsexual pride parade in Istanbul’s central Taksim Square on June 24, but police stopped the group before anyone suffered serious injuries, Hurriyet reports.

Members of Alperen Ocakları, the youth wing of the Islamist Great Unity Party (BBP), threw stones and bottles at a group of thousands of people wearing costumes and carrying colorful banners for the parade.

Police intervened and blocked the attackers’ path to İstiklal Avenue in order to provide security for the marchers. The attacking group, who had gathered to commemorate recently fallen Turkish soldiers, chanted slogans such as “the only flag allowed here is the Turkish flag, not that piece of fabric.”