Gay activist Ahmet Yildiz (pictured), a physics student who represented his country at an international gay gathering in San Francisco in 2007, was shot and killed last week after leaving an Istanbul café.

His friends believe his death was the direct result of homophobia, and have labeled his murder Turkey’s first gay honour killing.

“He fell victim to a war between old mentalities and growing civil liberties,” said Sedef Cakmak, a member of the gay rights group Lambda. “I feel helpless: we are trying to raise awareness of gay rights in this country, but the more visible we become, the more we open ourselves up to this sort of attack.”

Members of Yildiz’s family have so far failed to claim his body from the morgue, or to make funeral arrangements, a situation common in honour killings, of which 220 were recorded in Turkey in 2007.

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