Israeli police boost security for Jerusalem gay pride parade

Jerusalem (AP) — Israeli police say they are stepping up security measures for this week's gay pride parade in Jerusalem after a deadly attack at last year's festivities.

Police said Tuesday that hundreds of officers will guard the marchers and will conduct security checks at entrances to the parade route. The parade is on Thursday.

An extremist ultra-Orthodox Jew stabbed revelers at last year's parade, killing a 16-year-old girl and wounding seven others. The man, Yishai Schlissel, was released weeks earlier after serving a sentence for stabbing several people at the city's pride parade in 2005.

Jerusalem, known for its rich religious history and tradition, holds a modest gay pride parade annually in contrast to the raucous one in the nearby liberal city of Tel Aviv, which this year drew some 200,000 people.

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The Gayly – July 19, 2016 @ 11:45 a.m.