Schlissel in court
Schlissel in courtMuammar Awad, Reuters

Yishai Schlissel, the extremist who murdered a 16-year-old girl at Jerusalem's Gay Pride parade on July 30, was brought before the Jerusalem District Court Thursday, one month after he was charged with one count of murder and six counts of attempted murder and aggravated assault.

The session was intended to let the judges hear Schlissel's response to the charges.

However, the attorney appointed for him by the state's Public Legal Defense told the judge that he cannot reply in Schlissel's name, because Schlissel refuses to cooperate with him, despite several attempts to get him to do so.

Schlissel himself told the judges, “you do no judging according to Din Torah (the law of Torah - ed.) and are not allowed to judge, and therefore I am not interested in any representation.”

Faced with this continued refusal, the judges decided to grant an extension until late October, to give the attorney more time to try and get Schlissel to cooperate.

Schlissel has already served ten years in jail for stabbing three marchers during the 2005 gay pride parade in Jerusalem. He was released in June 2015, and shortly afterward distributed a letter in his hometown which read, "it is the obligation of every Jew to keep his soul from punishment and stop this giant desecration of God’s name next Thursday."

On July 30, only three weeks after being released, he stabbed six marchers during the Jerusalem gay pride parade, including Shira Banki, 16, who died of her wounds.