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2004 gay pride parade in Jerusalem (Pierre Turjeman)
Last update - 20:18 29/01/2008
Shas MK: Gays are causing Israeli society to self-destruct
By Shahar Ilan, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: Israel, gay pride, Shas 

As a Knesset panel deliberated Tuesday on proposals to ban all gay pride parades in Jerusalem, MK Nissim Ze'ev (Shas) accused the homosexual community of "carrying out the self-destruction of Israeli society and the Jewish people."

Ze'ev also said homosexuals were a plague as "toxic as bird flu."

The Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee met to debate two bills presented by religious party members which would amend the Jerusalem municipality's Basic Law to prevent gay pride parades from being held within the city limits.
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The bills were presented by MK Eli Gabai (National Union - National Religious Party) and MK Yitzhak Vakhnin (Shas).

Both bulls were passed in a preliminary reading in the Knesset plenum and have have now been brought for committee deliberations ahead of a first reading.

MK Zahava Gal-On (Meretz) said in response to Ze'ev's comments that "when I hear concepts like plague and self-destruction, I don't believe they are in the lexicon of expressions. The capital city does not belong only to the ultra-Orthodox."

The chairman of Israel's LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) organization, Michael Hammel, called Ze'ev's words embarrassing and frightening.

"The right to march in the capital city is not a local 'Jerusalemite' matter," he said. "This is a culture war, where politicians are trying to turn Jerusalem into their private property."

Committee members decided that public figures from the religious and homosexual communities in Jerusalem would meet to discuss the gay pride parade on a separate occasion.

MK Yitzhak Levy (NU - NRP) said, "the current situation is that this is a crippled and small protest: once you close a stadium, once you give 100 meters. There should have been a discussion to find new ideas, thus I am calling for a discussion."

Noa Setet, who runs Jerusalem's Open House - the organization which has initiated the parade - seconded Levy's suggestion, but added that the group had scheduled two meetings in the past and Levy's aides had canceled both of them.

Levy denied having canceled the meeting and said he intended two recruit other public figures from the religious community for the future discussion.

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  • 15 arrested protesting against Jerusalem Gay Pride parade
  • Some 3,500 march in gay pride parade in Jerusalem

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      1.   Haredi Hate Speech 17:39  |  Paul 29/01/08
      2.   Haredi Hate Speech ctd 17:45  |  Paul 29/01/08
      3.   How stupid...this is news? 18:25  |  TAZ 29/01/08
      4.   gay 18:37  |  eyal 29/01/08
      5.   #3 - This is not a stupid issue.... 18:57  |  B`Galil 29/01/08
      6.   Let`s talk about building Israel... 18:59  |  Dudu Ket 29/01/08
      7.   arrest the lunatic 19:05  |  alan 29/01/08
      8.   To Paul.... 19:05  |  Jordan 29/01/08
      9.   No. 1, Paul 19:06  |  W 29/01/08
      10.   NOT IN JERUSALEM! 19:06  |  Jordan 29/01/08
      11.   I hope the day will come when SHAS and 19:13  |  Puhi 29/01/08
      12.   sure, we gays are causing the country to self-destruct 19:19  |  Gay guy 29/01/08
      13.   WHY the march? 19:19  |  perplexed 29/01/08
      14.   Is Jerusalem falling apart because of gay-marches? G-D´s anger? 19:21  |  perplexed 29/01/08
      15.   WHY this offensive language and name-calling? 19:24  |  perplexed 29/01/08
      16.   So I guess that Gays won`t be voting for Shas then. 19:27  |  S Judah 29/01/08
      17.   Before excpecting sensetiviti,be sensetive yourself 19:28  |  TOMY 29/01/08
      18.   Is it possible to have organised religion without bigotry? 19:32  |  Michael 29/01/08
      19.   Please see: Islamic Movement head charged with incitement 19:33  |  Ariel 29/01/08
      20.   Ha´aretz left out the main point 19:46  |  perplexed 29/01/08
      21.   Choices to make 20:30  |  Steve Beikirch 29/01/08
      22.   "Oye Gevalt" 21:04  |  H 29/01/08
      23.   Leftist hypocrisy and free speech 21:07  |  Binyamin Dissen 29/01/08
      24.   Paul #2 - perhaps you will stop your hate? 21:09  |  Binyamin Dissen 29/01/08
      25.   Jordan (8), you have to see the Jewish prescriptions on sexuality 21:25  |  Karl 29/01/08
      26.   homosexulaity is not a norm 21:47  |  fish 29/01/08
      27.   shas is gay 21:55  |  don 29/01/08
      28.   We`re here, we`re queer, get used to it. 22:10  |  Super Gay Jew 29/01/08
      29.   Gays are the salt of the earth 22:12  |  Danite 29/01/08
      30.   We should send somebody over to his house 22:15  |  Benjamin 29/01/08
      31.   ...and I thought that it might have something to do with... 22:17  |  matti 29/01/08
      32.   Gays just do not get it 22:23  |  Binyamin Dissen 29/01/08
      33.   Binyamin Dissen/Free speech 22:23  |  Paul 29/01/08
      34.   Binyamin Dissen 22:29  |  Paul 29/01/08
      35.   Hey Shas. Concern yourself with your own moral terpitude... 22:33  |  bat yam 29/01/08
      36.   Re #29 was written by chgodmk 22:42  |  danite 29/01/08
      37.   Proud to be " toxic as bird flu" 22:51  |  Yaakov Sullivan 29/01/08
      38.   i got news for shas 22:52  |  david &jonathan 29/01/08
      39.   Ignore him 23:14  |  Iz Ray Leigh 29/01/08
      40.   Gays: We Are the Salt of the Earth 23:27  |  Danite 29/01/08
      41.   Not gay parades that should be banned... 23:42  |  Gay Shas MK 29/01/08
      42.   Grow up, Nissim Ze`ev 23:45  |  newageblues 29/01/08
      43.   Check Out What Danite Wrote in My Name 23:47  |  CHGODMK 29/01/08
      44.   #12, gay guy, mops the floor with Ze`ev`s nonsense 23:59  |  newageblues 29/01/08
      45.   Something disgusting about Jews scapegoating 00:07  |  newageblues 30/01/08
      46.   The REAL cause for Israel`s destruction 00:36  |  Danny Ben Adam 30/01/08
      47.   Proud to be Goy, Gay, Guy Anen! 01:05  |  Yaakov Sullivan 30/01/08
      48.   Gays in Jerusalem 01:06  |  Rumi 30/01/08
      49.   Iz Ray Leigh 38 01:29  |  alan 30/01/08
      50.   Today Europe achieved their "Liberation", Tomorrow Sharia 01:46  |  Efox 30/01/08
      51.   re: Danite 01:47  |  Efox 30/01/08
      52.   #40 Yaakov 02:04  |  Rumi 30/01/08
      53.   re: Super Gay Jew 02:34  |  Efox 30/01/08
      54.   re: newageblues 02:40  |  Efox 30/01/08
      55.   All religous Jews will be expeled by us! 03:10  |  Proud Gay 30/01/08
      56.   I think this site should 03:15  |  Theodor 30/01/08
      57.   What would Jesus do? Partisipate in gay parade in Jerusalem 03:16  |  Yaakov Sullivan 30/01/08
      58.   Society and MK Tzadikim 03:33  |  Harry 30/01/08
      59.   More Gay Parades! 03:51  |  PK 30/01/08
      60.   MARRIAGE- is the moral, legal & social 04:13  |  Cristo 30/01/08
      61.   Clearly Israel has no insane asylums 05:01  |  Mark Lincoln 30/01/08
      62.   gay and against the parade 05:09  |  not important 30/01/08
      63.   you know it is getting bad 05:34  |  natan 30/01/08
      64.   what`s with the anti-religious incitement? 06:13  |  Gay guy 30/01/08
      65.   Gay pride destroying Israeli Society 06:44  |  Eli 30/01/08
      66.   efox re false danite post 06:47  |  danite 30/01/08
      67.   let them be GAy 06:56  |  fadi 30/01/08
      68.   ARE SHAS MK`s causing Israeli society to self-destruct?? 07:04  |  PETER SM 30/01/08
      69.   take clue from our king David and his frolicking in the streets. 07:47  |  Yonatan 30/01/08
      70.   Shas continues the Nazi idioligy 08:04  |  A gay Guy 30/01/08
      71.   #37, Yaakov Sullivan... 08:11  |  Silvienne 3