International

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Ghana Anglican Church officially speaks out against country’s new anti-LGBTQ+ laws

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The leader of Ghana’s Anglican Church has officially opposed harsher anti-LGBTQ+ laws that will soon be introduced in the West African country. Archbishop Cyril Kobina Ben-Smith spoke out against the impending laws last week while speaking to the BBC. The Draconian law will make simply identifying as anything under the LGBTQ+ umbrella a criminal offence. The bill also criminalises the promotion of LGBTQ+ activities, and introduces a “duty to report” acts that go against the law. Anyone that identifies as an ally to the community can also face imprisonment. Exemptions would be made for those who work in the legal, media and healthcare sectors […]

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Russian LGBT Network shuts down after ‘extremism’ ruling makes its work ‘impossible’

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Gay rights activists march in St. Petersburg in May 2013 (Image: Getty Images, stock) The Russian LGBT Network has announced it is shutting down after a St Petersburg court designated the group an “extremist” organisation, saying the ruling makes public operations too risky for staff, supporters and people seeking help. The group confirmed the decision in a statement on Telegram. A St Petersburg court in April declared the Russian LGBT Network “extremist” following a lawsuit by Russia’s Justice Ministry. The Russian LGBT Network said the label makes its previous public format of work impossible because “any connection to the organisation may create additional […]

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Homophobic attackers who assaulted gay couple with fruit spared jail sentence

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Two men who chased a gay couple through north London, spat at them and pelted them with fruit while hurling homophobic abuse have avoided jail, despite being convicted of a hate crime. Mariusz Smietana, 46, and Dariusz Wawrzenczyk, 37, were sentenced at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court after being found guilty of assault by beating over the attack on Alex Grant, 34, and his partner in Gospel Oak, Camden. The court heard the couple were holding hands as they walked home from swimming at the Highgate Men’s Ponds on Hampstead Heath, shortly after 10pm on 1 July 2025, when they were […]

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Teens detained after gay man beaten to death in Bulgaria

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Police are investigating whether a fatal attack on a gay man in Bulgaria was motivated by his sexual orientation. Georgi Kuzev, 31, was found seriously injured near Youth Hill in Plovdiv at around 5:20pm on Tuesday (4 August), according to Bulgarian outlet Novinite. He was discovered by parents on their way to collect their children from a nearby nursery, who found him lying helpless and alerted emergency services. Kuzev was rushed to hospital with severe head trauma, multiple fractures and extensive internal injuries, but died despite doctors’ efforts to save him. Several teenagers, including minors, have been detained as the investigation […]

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Puberty blockers trial can go ahead as UK court throws out challenge

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The High Court has ruled that the PATHWAYS puberty blockers trial can go ahead, after a judge threw out a challenge from campaigners. The challenge came from a number of groups or individuals, including the Bayswater Support Group which give “support for parents of children IDing as trans”. They asked that the trial be blocked, arguing it was unlawful. However the High Court has ruled it can go ahead after a two-day hearing. In a statement, the PATHWAYS Trial research team said: “We welcome the Court’s decision. The safety and welfare of young people will remain our highest priority in carrying out this research.  “PATHWAYS Trial is […]

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Gay rights advocate who had first same-sex wedding in Quebec dies

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Michael Hendricks, the Canadian gay rights advocate whose legacy spans HIV/AIDS-era remembrance and a landmark marriage equality fight in Quebec, has died aged 84. Hendricks died via medical assistance on 18 July after living with a degenerative lung disease, and is survived by his husband, René Leboeuf, as reported by Fugues. During the HIV and AIDS epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s, the couple fought for LGBTQ+ rights and worked with other activists and the City of Montreal to create a permanent memorial to the people of Quebec who had died of AIDS. Their efforts resulted in Parc de l’Espoir, built […]

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Macron gives human rights role to senator who campaigned against gay marriage in France

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France has appointed a new human rights ombudsman who spent years opposing the very rights he is now tasked with defending. Right-wing senator François-Noël Buffet was narrowly approved as the country’s Défenseur des droits on Tuesday, with lawmakers backing Emmanuel Macron‘s nominee by 43 votes to 39. The Défenseur des droits is an independent watchdog responsible for defending citizens whose rights have been infringed and ensuring equal protection under French law, a key institution for LGBTQ+ people, migrants and other minorities. Buffet took part in protests against same-sex marriage in 2013, when France legalised it, and in 2021 voted against extending medically […]

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Terrorist attack at huge Berlin Pride parade celebration leaves 1 dead, dozens injured

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A woman was killed, and 29 people were injured Saturday night when a vehicle drove into a crowd near Berlin’s Pride celebration, in what German officials are investigating as a suspected Islamist terrorist attack. Authorities were searching Sunday for a 21-year-old suspect publicly identified as Abdul B., according to the German news program Tagesschau. Police warned that he may be armed and dangerous and urged the public not to approach him. Stay up to date with the latest in LGBTQ+ news with The Advocate’s email newsletter, in your inbox five days a week. “Everything we see here indicates that we are dealing with an Islamist […]

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Pakistan shooting leaves one trans person dead and another injured

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A transgender person has been killed and another injured in a shooting that took place in Peshawar in Pakistan. An unidentified assailant opened fire near Raja Ground Bridge in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa city, police have revealed. The deceased person has been identified as Mishi. The other victim, named Tara, was taken to hospital with gunshot wounds. According to The Express Tribune in a report published on 16 July, Mishi and Tara had gone to Raja Ground Bridge in order to retrieve a phone and some money from a friend. The task resulted in an altercation that led to the shooting. Officers arrived on scene shortly after […]

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Polish president blocks bill that would have granted rights to same-sex couples

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Polish President Karol Nawrocki has vetoed legislation that would have granted unmarried couples, including same-sex couples, a limited set of legal rights, in turn preventing what would have been Poland‘s first legal recognition of same-sex relationships. The bill, which was backed by Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s governing coalition and approved by both houses of parliament in May and June, would have allowed couples to register a legal agreement giving them rights including joint property ownership, access to a partner’s medical information, inheritance tax exemptions, joint tax settlement, and the ability to make burial decisions. It stopped just short of introducing marriage […]

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