Ultra-Orthodox Jew stabs at least 6 at Jerusalem gay pride parade
Published time: 30 Jul, 2015 16:06
Edited time: 30 Jul, 2015 19:01
At least six people were stabbed at an LGBT pride parade by in Jerusalem on Thursday, local media reported, citing Israeli police and paramedics. The suspected attacker, an ultra-Orthodox Jew, has been arrested.
Police said that six people have been injured, The Jerusalem Post reported, adding that two of them were in serious condition.
The attacker who was arrested was apparently an ultra-Orthodox Jew – a follower of Haredi Judaism, which is characterized by rejection of modern secular culture, reported Channel 10.
Zoe Schochet, 18, who took part in the parade, was talking to one of the victims when an assailant stabbed him in the back.
“It was really scary,” she told The Times of Israel, adding that the man was bearded and was dressed in black.
The incident took place on Keren Hayesod Street in Jerusalem.
Emergency services have been seen treating the victims on the scene.
"We heard people screaming, everyone ran for cover, and there were bloodied people on the ground,” Shai Aviyor, a witness, told Israel's Channel 2 TV.
In the meantime, Oded Fried, the head of a prominent gay rights society told Reuters that the parade will continue despite the incident.
"Our struggle for equality only intensifies in the face of such events," he said.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has condemned the attack on Gay Pride parade.
“It’s a most grave incident,” he said. “We will mete out justice to those responsible for the act. In the state of Israel freedom of choice of the individual is one of the basic values. We must ensure that in Israel every man and woman will live in security with whichever way they choose to live.”
According to Education Minister Naftali Bennett, “the stabbing at the gay pride parade is a moral crime that cannot be forgiven.”
“Whoever committed this crime harmed Jewish values and ethics and needs to get the most severe punishment,” he said.
Police identified the attacker as Yishai Shlissel, who stabbed three participants in the LGBT pride parade back in 2005, Jerusalem Post said. Shlissel had been recently released from jail after serving a 10-year prison sentence. He was initially sentenced to 12 years in jail for attempted murder, but then the Supreme Court of Israel shortened his sentence.
Before committing the stabbing in 2005 he reportedly shouted, “I came to kill in God’s name.”
http://www.rt.com/news/311185-israel-gay-pride-stabbed/
