By Gudrun Schultz
JERUSALEM, Israel, July 24, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Homosexual activists will not march through the streets of Jerusalem this year, after officials announced the cancellation of the WorldPride 2006 parade yesterday.
Jerusalem police told organizers they would not have the forces available to ensure the security of the gay pride march, the central event of the weeklong festival scheduled for August 6 to 12.
Although escalating violence between Israel and Lebanon was officially cited as the reason behind the cancellation, officials admitted the volatile situation gave them an excuse to ban the controversial event, reported the Jerusalem Post today. Earlier this month Jerusalem police responded to protests against the festival by saying the event would likely be moved to Tel Aviv.
Smaller indoor events, however, including a concert and a film festival, will go on as planned “in format that is sensitive to the situation” a statement by festival organizer Open House said, according to Ynet News.
Opponents of the festival have said the cancellation of the parade is not enough, and they intend to keep working to shut down all planned events.
“This is not a significant victory for those who want Jerusalem to be a moral haven, and to have one week of militant homosexual activities in the city is not acceptable,” Rabbi Yehuda Levin of the Orthodox ‘Rabbinical Alliance of America’ and the ‘Union of Orthodox Rabbis of the US and Canada’ told the Jerusalem Post. The New York Rabbi has led an international campaign against the event.
The choice of Jerusalem as the location of WorldPride caused an outcry from Jewish, Muslim and Christian leaders in Jerusalem and around the world, who condemned the homosexual celebration as a deliberate offence toward the millions of faithful worldwide who regard Jerusalem as a holy city. A majority of Jerusalem’s citizens are opposed to the festival—a poll conducted last year showed three quarters of respondents felt the event should be kept out of the holy city.
WorldPride organizers targeted Jerusalem as the city of choice for the event after holding the 2000 festival in Rome. The demonstration was initially scheduled to take place last year, but after strong protests by opponents the event was postponed at the last minute, with organizers citing upheaval due to the Israeli pullout from the Gaza strip.
See previous LifeSiteNews coverage:
Middle East Hostilities May Cancel Homosexual ‘WorldPride’ in Jerusalem
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/jul/06071904.html
Israeli Rabbi Calls Palestinians To Join In Protecting Holy Land From Gay Activism
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/jun/06062208.html
International Religious Outcry Close to Booting Gay Pride from Holy City of Jerusalem
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/jul/06070702.html