A lesbian refugee has been deported from Germany to Türkiye despite facing serious threats to her life, prompting strong criticism from the lesbian counselling organisation, LeTRa.
The Munich-based group condemned the deportation of 33-year-old Kiymet A. as a “particularly dramatic and worrying case” and a “human rights failure.”
According to LeTRa, Kiymet was deported to Istanbul on 18 August 2025 from Bavaria. Police reportedly removed her from her home in the early hours without allowing her to pack her belongings, despite evidence that she faced serious danger in Turkiye due to her sexuality.
Julia Serdarov from LeTRa also revealed that Kiymet had not been able to speak openly about her sexuality during the asylum process due to fear of her relatives in Germany. “Before she had the chance to explain the true reasons for her flight, she was deported.”
As a teenager, Kiymet’s brother tried to kill her for resisting a forced marriage. Her life has been marked by fear of family violence, exacerbated by her being lesbian.
Julia Bomsdorf from LeTRa warns that returning Kiymet could be fatal: “Queer people are not legally protected there, Pride events are banned, and queer people are regularly victims of attacks and hate crimes. Women’s rights organizations document hundreds of murders of women and femicides every year, many of them ‘honour killings.'”
LeTRa is seeing a dramatic rise in demand for their services, with no Turkish lesbian, queer, or trans person within their service in 2022, they are currently supporting another 12 , all but one of whom have had their asylum applications denied. This shift in demand illustrates what LeTRa calls a systemic issue: refugees being removed before receiving proper legal advice or support.
Kiymet is now reportedly in hiding in Istanbul, living in fear of discovery.
LeTRa condemns Kiymet’s removal: “She should never have been deported to a country where she faces violence, ‘honour killings,’ and homophobic persecution.”
Sources:
- https://schwulissimo.de/neuigkeiten/abschiebung-die-tuerkei-letra-uebt-scharfe-kritik
- https://mannschaft.com/a/toedliche-gefahr-lesbische-frau-nach-tuerkei-abgeschoben-letra
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