Moscow's city government reconfirmed on Wednesday its decision to reject an application to hold a gay pride parade in the city.
An application was rejected in mid-May due to complaints from religious groups, ultra-nationalists and the Moscow City Parent Committee. Amnesty International had urged the authorities to reverse their decision.
Former Moscow mayor, Yury Luzkhov, who was in power for 18 years before being dismissed by President Dmitry Medvedev in September last year, famously described gay parades as "satanic".
However, the capital's gay community had expressed hope that a parade would be permitted by new mayor Sergei Sobyanin. However, in February Sobyanin said that gay parades in Moscow were inadmissible.
Last year, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Russia had violated the rights of gay activists by refusing to allow them to openly protest, and ordered the government to pay a fine and damages amounting to about $40,000.
MOSCOW, May 25 (RIA Novosti)