Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people generally have limited or highly restrictive rights in most parts of West Asia, and are open to hostility in others. Same-sex behavior is punishable by imprisonment in five of the 18 countries in the region. It is also punishable by death in five of these 18 countries. The rights and freedoms of LGBTQ citizens are strongly influenced by the prevailing cultural traditions and religious mores of people living in the region – particularly Islam.
All same-sex activity is legal in Bahrain, Cyprus, Northern Cyprus, Israel, the West Bank and Turkey. In Lebanon, various courts have ruled that the law criminalizing sexual acts which "contradict the laws of nature" cannot be used to arrest LGBT people.
All same-sex activity is illegal and punishable by imprisonment in Iraq, Oman, Syria and the Gaza Strip. In Kuwait, only male homosexuality is illegal. In Egypt, while no specific law criminalizing same-sex sexual acts exists, various morality provisions are used to enforce a de facto ban. Homosexuality is punishable by death in Iran, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
It is possible to legally change your gender in seven West Asian territories: Cyprus, Northern Cyprus, Israel, Turkey, Bahrain, Lebanon and Iran.
The right to change your gender is only unrestricted in Cyprus. In Israel, a medical diagnosis is needed and Northern Cyprus, Turkey, Bahrain and Iran require sex reassignment surgery. In Lebanon, legal gender recognition is "granted individually by the presiding magistrate, with unclear requirements". In Egypt, in 2024, a 1994 law permitting transgender and intersex people to legally change their gender was amended to exclude trans individuals.
Sex reassignment surgery is explicitly illegal in Jordan and the United Arab Emirates. Non-normative gender expression is criminalized in Oman, punishable by a fine and/or imprisonment. Trans people have also been subject to persecution under "cross-dressing" laws in Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates; as well as under Egypt's morality laws.
History
Evidence of homosexuality in West Asia and North Africa can be traced back at least until the time of Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. In ancient Assyria, sex crimes were punished identically whether they were homosexual or heterosexual.Homoeroticism in the Biblical World: A Historical Perspective, by Martti Nissinen, Fortress Press, 2004, pp. 24–28 An individual faced no punishment for penetrating someone of equal social class, a cult prostitute, or with someone whose gender roles were not considered solidly masculine. In an Akkadian tablet, the Šumma ālu, it states, "If a man copulates with his equal from the rear, he becomes the leader among his peers and brothers". However, homosexual relationships with fellow soldiers, slaves, royal attendants, or those where a social better was submissive or penetrated, were treated as bad omens.Pritchard, p. 181.Gay Rights Or Wrongs: A Christian's Guide to Homosexual Issues and Ministry, by Mike Mazzalonga, 1996, p. 11 A Middle Assyrian Law Codes dating from 1075 BC has a rather harsh law for homosexuality in the military, which reads: "If a man have intercourse with his brother-in-arms, they shall turn him into a eunuch."
Around 250 BC, during the Parthian Empire, the Zoroastrian text Vendidad was written. It contains provisions that are part of sexual code promoting procreative sexuality that is interpreted to prohibit same-sex intercourse as sinful. Ancient commentary on this passage suggests that those engaging in sodomy could be killed without permission from a high priest. However, a strong homosexual tradition in Iran is attested to by Greek historians from the 5th century onward, and so the prohibition apparently had little effect on Iranian attitudes or sexual behavior outside the ranks of devout Zoroastrians in rural eastern Iran.
The Quran narrates the story of the "people of Lot" destroyed by the wrath of God because the men engaged in lustful carnal acts between themselves.(references 7:80–84, 11:77–83, 21:74, 22:43, 26:165–175, 27:56–59, & 29:27–33)Duran (1993) p. 179Kligerman (2007) pp. 53–54 Within the Quran, it never states that homosexuality is punishable by death, and modern historians conclude that the Islamic prophet Muhammad never forbade homosexual relationships, although he shared contempt towards them alongside his contemporaries. However, some hadith collections condemn homosexual and transgender acts, prescribing death penalty for both the active and receptive partners who have engaged in male homosexual intercourse.
There is little evidence of homosexual practice in Islamic societies for the first century and a half of the early history of Islam, although male homosexual relationships were known and ridiculed, but not sanctioned, in Arabia.
During the medieval period and the early modern age, West Asian societies saw a flourishing of homo-erotic literature. Shusha Guppy of the Times Higher Education Supplement argued that although it "has long been assumed that the Arab-Islamic societies have always been less tolerant of homosexuality than the West", in "the pre-modern era, Western European travelers were amazed to find Islam 'a sex-positive religion' and men openly expressing their love for young boys in words and gestures."Guppy, Shusha. "Veiled might of the harem. (American University Press) (Before Homosexuality in the Arab-Islamic World, 1500–1800) (Book review)" (Archive only available to researchers and legal). Times Higher Education Supplement, 9 June 2006, Vol.0 (1746), p. 33(1). . Source: Cengage Learning, Inc.
During the Islamic Golden Age, the Abbasid dynasty is known for being relatively liberal regarding homosexuality. This is due to a variety of factors, notably the move towards a more bureaucratic Islamic rule and away from literalist adherence to the scripture.
Many Islamic rulers were known to engage in, or at least tolerate, homosexual activity. For instance, Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid II was said to enjoy "al-talawut", an Arabic word for sex with other men. Abu Nuwas, one of the most prominent Arab poets to extensively produce homoerotic works, did so under the tutelage and protection of Harun al-Rashid. Harun al-Rashid's successor, Al-Amin, rejected women and concubines, preferring eunuchs instead.
Homosexual acts are forbidden in traditional Islamic jurisprudence and are liable to different punishments, including the death penalty, depending on the situation and legal school. However, homosexual relationships were generally tolerated in pre-modern Islamic societies, and historical records suggest that these laws were invoked infrequently, mainly in cases of rape or other "exceptionally blatant infringement on public morals". Public attitudes toward homosexuality in the Muslim world underwent a marked negative change starting from the 19th century through the gradual spread of Islamic fundamentalist movements such as Salafism and Wahhabism, and the influence of the sexual notions and restrictive norms prevalent in Europe at the time: a number of Muslim-majority countries have retained criminal penalties for homosexual acts enacted under European colonial rule.Tilo Beckers, "Islam and the Acceptance of Homosexuality", in Islam and Homosexuality, Volume 1, ed. Samar Habib, pp. 64–65 (Praeger, 2009). In the 19th and early 20th century, homosexual activity was relatively common in West Asia and North Africa, owing in part to widespread sex segregation, which made heterosexual encounters outside marriage more difficult. Georg Klauda writes that "Countless writers and artists such as André Gide, Oscar Wilde, Edward M. Forster, and Jean Genet made pilgrimages in the 19th and 20th centuries from homophobic Europe to Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, and various other Arab countries, where homosexual sex was not only met without any discrimination or subcultural ghettoization whatsoever, but rather, additionally as a result of rigid segregation of the sexes, seemed to be available on every corner." An earlier version of this article appeared in: Also published as the first chapter of Homosexuality was outlawed in 1943 in Lebanon, to conform to the rule of the Vichy regime of France. The law is known as article 543 in the country's Penal Code. In Iran, men could be intimate with other men without being in a formal relationship. Young men without facial hair were considered beautiful and older men would pursue them. It was not until the nineteenth century, when Europeans began to visit Iran, that the view of homosexual male relationships became negative. European men claimed the relations between Iranian men were immoral. This European perspective was widely adopted by Iranian society. This outlook on queerness within West Asia and North Africa has worsened as totalitarian governments, beginning in the 1970s, came to power and justified their values on Islamic fundamentalism.
Transgender people have also faced backlash in West Asia and North Africa in the late 1900s. There was fear that because one could not differentiate men and women based on their outer appearance, it would cause instability within society. Gender-affirming surgeries were introduced and became accessible and prevalent among transgender women in Iran. In 1976, the Medical Council of Iran outlawed gender reassignment surgery after seeing the increase of procedures among transgender women. They have changed this ruling since then. [TSR.II_.pdf PDF download (572.6Kb)]
Before globalization, West Asian men and women who had homosexual relations did not consider themselves to be 'homosexual'. Due to exchanges between Western Europe and West Asia, the idea of "homosexuality" was introduced to the region and these people were then encouraged to associate themselves with new labels, such as "gay", "lesbian", "straight", and more. Before the use of these labels, people did not categorize their sexuality in that way.
West Asia today In Iran, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Yemen, the laws state that if a person is found guilty of engaging in same-sex sexual behavior, the death penalty would be applied. According to Country Reports of the US Department of State, in Saudi Arabia there are no established LGBTQ organizations. Furthermore, reports of official and social discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation remains unclear because of strong social pressure not to discuss LGBTQ matters.Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2009, p. 2414 Iran legally allows sex change, but non-binary people are not recognized.
Jordan and Bahrain are the only Arab countries where homosexuality is legal; some West Asian nations have some tolerance and legal protections for transsexual and transgender people. For example, the Iranian government has approved sex change operations under medical approval. The Syrian government has approved similar operations back in 2011.
LGBTQ rights movements have existed in West Asian nations, including Turkey and Lebanon. However, in both Turkey and Lebanon, changes have been slow and recent crackdown on LGBTQ oriented events have raised concerns about the freedom of association and expression of LGBTQ people and organizations. Lebanon is considerably more tolerant of homosexuality than neighboring countries.
Israel is a notable exception, being the most supportive towards LGBTQ rights and recognizing unregistered cohabitation. Israel also allows transgender individuals to legally change their gender without surgery. Transgender individuals can serve openly in the Israel Defense Forces.