Thousands of people marched this afternoon in Jerusalem at the annual gay pride parade. Participants gathered first at Jerusalem’s Liberty Bell Park for a happening before starting to march. The march ended later in the evening at the municipal Independence Park with a musical performance.

Knesset speaker Mickey Levy addressed the crowd at the park in a first for a person of his position. "Twenty years ago, as [police] commander of the Jerusalem district, I had the honor to first authorize the pride parade in Jerusalem, and now I am here as speaker of the Knesset. A real closure," said Levy.

Addressing the issue of threats that were sent in recent days against organizers of the parade and Knesset members, Levy said, "I was shocked to the core of my being by the heinous calls for murder and foul words targeted at the LGBTQ community, incitement that has already led to murder in the past."

The speaker of Knesset said that LGBTQ are equal citizens, deserving full rights as any other citizen. "You have the right to love whoever you want. You have the right to marry who you want. You have the right to establish a family, like anybody else. You have the right to live in equality and peace. These are not privileges. These are basic rights every citizen in our country is entitled to."