diff --git a/gitea-branch-protection.sh b/gitea-branch-protection.sh
index 09f43d41..a812d003 100644
--- a/gitea-branch-protection.sh
+++ b/gitea-branch-protection.sh
@@ -1,44 +1,6 @@
 #!/bin/bash
-
-# Apply branch protections to all repositories
-# Requires GITEA_TOKEN env var
-
-REPOS=("hermes-agent" "the-nexus" "timmy-home" "timmy-config")
-
-for repo in "${REPOS[@]}"
-do
-  curl -X POST "https://forge.alexanderwhitestone.com/api/v1/repos/Timmy_Foundation/$repo/branches/main/protection" \
-    -H "Authorization: token $GITEA_TOKEN" \
-    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-    -d '{
-        "required_reviews": 1,
-        "dismiss_stale_reviews": true,
-        "block_force_push": true,
-        "block_deletions": true
-      }'
-done
-#!/bin/bash
-
-# Gitea API credentials
-GITEA_TOKEN="your-personal-access-token"
-GITEA_API="https://forge.alexanderwhitestone.com/api/v1"
-
-# Repos to protect
-REPOS=("hermes-agent" "the-nexus" "timmy-home" "timmy-config")
-
-for REPO in "${REPO[@]}"; do
-  echo "Configuring branch protection for $REPO..."
-  
-  curl -X POST -H "Authorization: token $GITEA_TOKEN" \
-    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-    -d '{
-          "name": "main",
-          "require_pull_request": true,
-          "required_approvals": 1,
-          "dismiss_stale_approvals": true,
-          "required_status_checks": '"$(test "$REPO" = "hermes-agent" && echo "true" || echo "false")"',
-          "block_force_push": true,
-          "block_delete": true
-        }' \
-    "$GITEA_API/repos/Timmy_Foundation/$REPO/branch_protection"
-done
+# Wrapper for the canonical branch-protection sync script.
+# Usage: ./gitea-branch-protection.sh
+set -euo pipefail
+cd "$(dirname "$0")"
+python3 scripts/sync_branch_protection.py
diff --git a/scripts/sync_branch_protection.py b/scripts/sync_branch_protection.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..12233d3a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/sync_branch_protection.py
@@ -0,0 +1,81 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env python3
+"""
+Sync branch protection rules from .gitea/branch-protection/*.yml to Gitea.
+Correctly uses the Gitea 1.25+ API (not GitHub-style).
+"""
+
+import os
+import sys
+import json
+import urllib.request
+import yaml
+
+GITEA_URL = os.getenv("GITEA_URL", "https://forge.alexanderwhitestone.com")
+GITEA_TOKEN = os.getenv("GITEA_TOKEN", "")
+ORG = "Timmy_Foundation"
+CONFIG_DIR = ".gitea/branch-protection"
+
+
+def api_request(method: str, path: str, payload: dict | None = None) -> dict:
+    url = f"{GITEA_URL}/api/v1{path}"
+    data = json.dumps(payload).encode() if payload else None
+    req = urllib.request.Request(url, data=data, method=method, headers={
+        "Authorization": f"token {GITEA_TOKEN}",
+        "Content-Type": "application/json",
+    })
+    with urllib.request.urlopen(req, timeout=30) as resp:
+        return json.loads(resp.read().decode())
+
+
+def apply_protection(repo: str, rules: dict) -> bool:
+    branch = rules.pop("branch", "main")
+    # Check if protection already exists
+    existing = api_request("GET", f"/repos/{ORG}/{repo}/branch_protections")
+    exists = any(r.get("branch_name") == branch for r in existing)
+
+    payload = {
+        "branch_name": branch,
+        "rule_name": branch,
+        "required_approvals": rules.get("required_approvals", 1),
+        "block_on_rejected_reviews": rules.get("block_on_rejected_reviews", True),
+        "dismiss_stale_approvals": rules.get("dismiss_stale_approvals", True),
+        "block_deletions": rules.get("block_deletions", True),
+        "block_force_push": rules.get("block_force_push", True),
+        "block_admin_merge_override": rules.get("block_admin_merge_override", True),
+        "enable_status_check": rules.get("require_ci_to_merge", False),
+        "status_check_contexts": rules.get("status_check_contexts", []),
+    }
+
+    try:
+        if exists:
+            api_request("PATCH", f"/repos/{ORG}/{repo}/branch_protections/{branch}", payload)
+        else:
+            api_request("POST", f"/repos/{ORG}/{repo}/branch_protections", payload)
+        print(f"✅ {repo}:{branch} synced")
+        return True
+    except Exception as e:
+        print(f"❌ {repo}:{branch} failed: {e}")
+        return False
+
+
+def main() -> int:
+    if not GITEA_TOKEN:
+        print("ERROR: GITEA_TOKEN not set")
+        return 1
+
+    ok = 0
+    for fname in os.listdir(CONFIG_DIR):
+        if not fname.endswith(".yml"):
+            continue
+        repo = fname[:-4]
+        with open(os.path.join(CONFIG_DIR, fname)) as f:
+            cfg = yaml.safe_load(f)
+        if apply_protection(repo, cfg.get("rules", {})):
+            ok += 1
+
+    print(f"\nSynced {ok} repo(s)")
+    return 0
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    raise SystemExit(main())