The August "World Pride 2005" international gay festival in Jerusalem has been cancelled and rescheduled for next year because the event coincided with the planned Israeli withdrawal of settlers in Gaza, organisers have said.

Jerusalem Open House, said it did not want the event to take place at a time when tensions were running high, according to the New York Times. Prominent Christian, Jewish, and Muslim clerics had been united in opposition to the festival.

Itai Pinkas, a member of the Tel Aviv city council and member of the "homo-lesbian community" said in a report by Al Bawaba News, "We are part of this nation, and as such, cannot deny the withdrawal plan is to start simultaneously at the time of the global gay events. Therefore, it has been decided upon to cancel the events."

The Gaza withdrawal had initially been scheduled for July but was pushed back until August.

Organisers insisted that religious opposition had not been the reason for cancellation, according to the New York Times.

In late March, senior Christian, Jewish, and Muslim leaders came together to issue a joint statement saying that the festival would "offend the very foundations of our religious values and the character of the Holy City," according to The Times newspaper.

Promotors said on their website that the event's purpose was to "bring thousands of us to Jerusalem to confront preconception with reality, prejudice with an opportunity for understanding, in a way that will capture the attention of the world."

After the cancellation, organisers say that the event will be rescheduled for August 2006 in Jerusalem, adding that there is a local gay rally planned for Jerusalem later this month, according to the New York Times.

The previous "World Pride" event took place in Rome in 2000.





Francis Helguero
Christian Today Correspondent