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Jul 05, 2005 16:24

Violent anti-gay protests continue

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Etgar Lefkovits, THE JERUSALEM POST Jul. 5, 2005

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A 30-year-old haredi man who was seen approaching an event organized by Jerusalem's gay and lesbian community in the city center Tuesday night was detained for questioning after police found a knife in his possession, police said.

The suspect told police that he came to the event to "read the placards" and that he uses the knife "to peel fruit", Jerusalem Police Spokesman Shmuel ben Ruby said.

Simultaneously, several thousand haredi protesters pelted three city busses with stones Tuesday evening at a central Jerusalem thoroughfare in a continuation of the protest over last week's gay pride parade in the city, police said.

One police officer was struck in the head by a rock, and was treated for injuries at Sha'are Zedek Hospital. Three Egged busses were also badly damaged, ben-Ruby said.

Police dispersed the rioters, who had congregated at Kikar Shabat in the heart of Jerusalem's haredi neighborhoods.

Earlier Tuesday, Yishai Schlissel, a 29-year-old haredi man was indicted Tuesday in the Jerusalem district court on three counts of attempted murder for allegedly stabbing three participants in last week's annual Jerusalem gay parade.

Schlissel, of Modi'in Ilit, was taking part in a boisterous haredi protest against the controversial event when he suddenly lunged into the crowd and stabbed three parade participants, moderately wounding one of them, an 18-year-old teen, the indictment says.

According to the charges, the suspect arrived at the parade armed with a knife, which he had bought ahead of the event in order to carry out the attack, and which he had hidden inside his coat.

As the parade participants made their way through central Jerusalem, Schlissel jumped into the crowd and stabbed three of the parade participants, including two 18-year-old teens, the brief two-page indictment states.

He was arrested on the scene. The most seriously wounded of the three victims, Adam David Russo, of the Jerusalem suburb of Givat Ze'ev, was hospitalized for three days at the city's Sha'are Tzedek Hospital where he was treated for chest, arm and hand injuries.
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