Protesters Against LGBTQ+ Chechen Purge Wrap Embassy in Pride Flag

As the persecution of LGBTQ+ Chechens continues, protesters in London took action over the weekend to call attention to the ongoing atrocity.

About 100 demonstrators gathered outside the Russian embassy in London on Sunday, Gay Timesreports, wrapping a rainbow flag banner around the building.

The protest was aimed at calling attention to the Russian republic's persecution of LGBTQ+ Chechens. First reported in 2017 and ongoing as of last month, LGBTQ+ Chechens have been rounded up in "concentration camps" where they have been beaten, tortured, assaulted, and even killed by authorities. At least 40 people were detained in the latest purge, brought to light by the Russian LGBT Network in December, and two people are said to have been killed.

The protesters' demands are as follows. They want:

1. U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May to publicly condemn the Russian republic's persecution of LGBTQ+ Chechens.

2. Governments to take in Chechen refugees fleeing persecution. (As of August 2017, only five countries were taking in LGBTQ+ asylum seekers: Germany, France, Lithuania, Canada, and a fifth country that chose to remain anonymous. Not a single LGBTQ+ Chechen refugee fleeing the purge has received asylum in the U.S., The Daily Beastreported earlier this week.)

3. A U.N. investigation into the matter.

4. Russia to bring those responsible to justice.

"Fifty years on from brave activists taking a stand at Stonewall, the appalling events in Chechnya highlight with vivid brutality that the fight isn't over," Pride in London co-chair Michael Salter-Church told Gay Times. "Whilst the U.K. is focused on Brexit we mustn't forget those who need our support. We must take a stand for our community in countries where they can't as it could -- and does -- cost them their lives."