In Tel Aviv, thousands join in largest LGBTQ Pride parade in the Middle East

Revellers take part in a gay pride parade in Tel Aviv

REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Revelers take part in a gay Pride parade in Tel Aviv, Israel June 9.

Tens of thousands of rainbow flag-toting revelers attended the LGBTQ Pride parade in Tel Aviv on June 9. It is the largest parade of its kind in the Middle East.

The annual parade featured floats with blaring sound systems. Revelers could be seen dancing on the balconies of surrounding buildings.

"We need to show ourselves and we also need to fight for others who need to feel like they can show themselves too, to empower everyone around us," Max Kratz, a parade participant from Germany told Reuters.

Same-sex marriage is against the law in Israel, but polls published in the country's media this week suggested that around three quarters of Israeli Jews supported permitting it.

"We are here to party and to celebrate with them, their freedom in Israel and we are hoping they are going in the right direction and have more privileges in the country," party-goer Shir Geri told Reuters.

The parade caps a week of pride festivities in the city, which authorities expected to draw 35,000 tourists.

The parade is sponsored by the municipality, which said it had invested heavily to promote gay tourism in recent years.