Jerusalem marks Pride 10 years after murder of teenage marcher

Thousands of Israelis took to the streets under a heavy police presence for Jerusalem's annual Pride march Thursday, a decade after the murder of a teenager by a Jewish extremist during the same event.

The fatal stabbing of 16-year-old Shira Banki on July 30 that year, in an attack that also wounded six others, prompted police to step up their surveillance of Pride festivities in Jerusalem in the years that followed.

Thursday's march snaked through central Jerusalem, with participants carrying rainbow flags, placards and balloons, while a small group of anti-LGBT counter-protesters were also permitted to gather in a contained space nearby.

"We mark 10 years since Shira Banki was murdered in Pride... which means that the Pride today is dedicated in her honour," Hadass Bloemendal, chairperson of the Jerusalem Open House for Pride and Tolerance, told AFP.

Nadav Haruvi, Banki's former teacher, said it was especially important for him to come this year.

"I come here every year, but this is actually the first time we're coming in an organised way as teachers from the school. And we understood that after a decade, we want to create a strong tradition for future generations of teachers," he said.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog also attended the march, a statement from his office said, making him the first president to join the event since Banki's murder.

"We came here to remember and remind, to honour the memory of a beautiful young Israeli girl who came to do good, Shira Banki, of blessed memory, who was murdered here 10 years ago," Herzog said, standing on the spot where Banki was killed.

"Her only goal was to do good and spread light in the world," he said.

"We must recognise a clear and unequivocal social principle: There is no place for violence, under any circumstances. There is no dialogue with violence. We will not accept violence in our society."

Banki's killer had been freed from prison just weeks before the 2015 attack, having completed a sentence for a prior attack at the Pride march that wounded three people.

He was later sentenced to life in prison for her murder.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid joined the marchers on Thursday, telling journalists that "liberal Israel is here and here to stay, and we stand by our friends in the LGBTQ community, and we are marching together in favour of rights for everyone".

The city has held an annual Pride march since 2002, often accompanied by counter-protests by far-right, religious groups.

Israel has a large and influential LGBTQ community, despite homosexuality being rejected by conservative religious parties.

While Israel does not register same-sex marriages itself, it recognises those conducted overseas.