Eurovision 2026 has been met with boycotts and protests
This is according to Reuters.
Five countries have withdrawn
Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland and Slovenia have declined to take part in this year’s contest. The public broadcasters of these countries explained the decision as a protest against Israel’s participation following the military operation in Gaza, which began in response to the Hamas attack on 7 October 2023. The Irish broadcaster RTE stated that participation in the event would be “unacceptable” due to the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the heavy civilian casualties. In Israel, however, officials are claiming there is an international campaign to discredit the country.
The contest has seen its lowest number of participants in over 20 years
Due to the boycott, the number of participants has fallen to 35 countries — the lowest figure since 2003. Representatives from 25 countries, including Israel, will perform in the final, which begins on the evening of 16 May. Contest director Martin Green told Reuters that the organisers are trying to keep Eurovision a “neutral space” where music should bring people together. Meanwhile, protests have been taking place in Vienna throughout the week. The police are expecting further demonstrations on the day of the final and are warning of possible attempts to disrupt the event. During one of the semi-finals, several protesters were removed from the venue after shouting in support of Palestine. Separately, the European Broadcasting Union issued a warning to the Israeli broadcaster KAN over a video urging people to vote for Israel’s representative, Noam Bettan. The clips were subsequently removed.
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