Turkey is systematically targeting Christians under the guise of “national security,” expelling hundreds of foreign believers and leaving local congregations without spiritual leadership, according to a legal advocacy group.

Speaking at the OSCE Warsaw Human Dimension Conference, Lidia Rieder, Legal Officer for ADF International said “Turkey’s labeling of peaceful Christian residents as ‘security threats’ is a clear misuse of law and an attack on freedom of religion or belief”.

“When governments manipulate administrative or immigration systems to exclude people based solely on their faith, it undermines both the rule of law and the very principles of tolerance and peaceful coexistence that the OSCE was founded to protect.”

Since 2020, more than 200 foreign Christian workers and their families—affecting roughly 350 individuals—have been expelled from Turkey, many of whom had lived there for decades. The Ministry of Interior has assigned these individuals so-called “security codes” such as N-82 and G-87, effectively banning their re-entry and classifying them as national security threats. Between December 2024 and January 2025 alone, at least 35 new codes were reportedly issued against foreign Christians.