Hatred has no place in Israeli society, says PM

In an English statement that differs slightly from the Hebrew message earlier, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel is surrounded by regime that murder people for their sexual orientation while the LGBTQ community marches in Jerusalem with pride.

Netanyahu mentioned the massacre last month at an Orlando gay nightclub in which 49 people lost their lives at the hands of Omar Mateen, a US-born man who pledged allegiance to the Islamic State, and the terror group’s policy of throwing homosexuals to their deaths off rooftops.

He also mentioned how the Iranian regime treats its gay community by “hang[ing] them from cranes in public squares.”

“This is nothing short of insanity,” writes Netanyahu in a post and video published on Facebook. “Surrounding us are regimes who literally murder you for being gay. In Israel, the LGBT community marches with pride.”

Netanyahu reiterates his belief that all people are created equal and pays tribute to Shira Banki, the 16-year-old teenager who was stabbed to death at last year’s pride parade in the capital by religious extremist Yishai Schlissel.

“Shira was murdered by an extremist filled with hate. And this hatred has no place whatsoever in Israeli society. We will always fight against it,” he writes, adding that “some elements of our society are still not yet ready to accept the LGBT community.”

“Whether you are marching today or not, I ask you to stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in the LGBT community,” says the PM.