PICS: Gay Pride marchers stabbed

Published Jul 30, 2015

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Jerusalem - An ultra-Orthodox Jew allegedly stabbed six Gay Pride marchers in Jerusalem Thursday, gravely wounding one of them, just weeks after completing a 10-year sentence for a similar attack, police and medics said.

The assault occurred in Jerusalem's city centre, with witnesses describing terrifying scenes of an assailant, dressed in ultra-Orthodox style garb, storming the parade with a knife.

The man was quickly arrested at the scene amid scenes of pandemonium, but the parade pushed ahead defiantly afterwards, even with blood on the road.

A police spokesman identified the suspect as Yishai Shlissel, who was released from jail three weeks ago after having served his sentence for wounding three marchers in an attack in 2005.

Media reported that Shlissel had posted a letter on the Internet speaking of the “abomination” of a Gay Pride parade in Jerusalem.

One of the victims, a woman, was in “very serious condition,” while two others were less seriously wounded, according to Magen David Adom, the Jewish equivalent of the Red Cross. Three others were lightly hurt.

At least two of those attacked were said to be men.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu swiftly condemned the attack as a “very serious incident”.

“The State of Israel respects the private freedom of individuals which is a fundamental principle exercised in this country,” he said.

“We must ensure that every man and every woman can live in full security in any way that they choose,” he said in a statement.

One woman, who was in a nearby grocery store when the attack occurred, spoke of a chaotic scene.

“All of a sudden, somebody came in and screamed, 'Somebody has a knife and is stabbing some people!'“ said Sharon Liebman, 51.

“I saw three people on the ground, two males and a female.”

She said the men appeared less seriously wounded than the woman, who was “bleeding profusely.”

Michael Rosner, 22, who had come from London for the parade, said “I saw the guy with the knife running. I saw the blood on the pavement.”

After police arrested the assailant, marchers carried on through streets decked with rainbow flags to a park where a party was planned for the evening.

Hundreds of police had been deployed to prevent violence breaking out in the highly conservative city during the annual march.

In past years, ultra-Orthodox protesters have gathered in their Mea Shearim bastion to denounce homosexuality.

Organisers of Thursday's march avoided ultra-Orthodox districts to try to avoid incidents.

Israel's homosexual community was plunged into grief in 2009 when a gunman attacked a centre for young gays in Tel Aviv killing two people and wounding some 15 others.

That assailant has never been apprehended.

Israel is widely seen as having liberal gay rights policies, despite the ultra-Orthodox hostility towards homosexuals, particularly men.

The Jewish state repealed a ban on consensual same-sex sexual acts in 1988.

AFP

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