Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands and Slovenia will boycott next year’s Eurovision Song Contest, after Israel was allowed to compete.
They were among a number of countries who had called for Israel to be excluded over the humanitarian toll of the war in Gaza, and accusations of unfair voting practices.
Despite calls for a vote on Israel’s participation, members instead approved a new set of rules intended to protect the integrity of the contest.
Ireland’s national broadcaster RTE said it felt that its “participation remains unconscionable given the appalling loss of lives in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there which continues to put the lives of so many civilians at risk.”
In a statement, Dutch broadcaster Avrotros said that “participation under the current circumstances is incompatible with the public values that are essential to us”.
Spanish broadcaster RTVE added: “The board of directors of RTVE agreed last September that Spain would withdraw from Eurovision if Israel was part of it.”
“This withdrawal also means that RTVE will not broadcast the Eurovision 2026 final… nor the preliminary semi-finals.”
Continue reading here - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cde6d8wyp79o
You must log in or register to comment.
If only Israelis had the capacity to feel shame
Removed by mod
This is antisemitism. Don’t do it, don’t upvote it, don’t spread it. Israeli ethnonationalism is not reducible to the Jewish religion. There is nothing in Judaism that deterministically leads to apartheid and genocide. Many Jews see the “chosen people” story as an intergenerational responsibility to unfuck the world (Tikkun Olam). Many Jews are antizionists precisely because of their Judaism.
But it’s also the central conceit of Zionism. Things can be more than one thing at the same time.
There is nothing unique about Zionism in how it weaponizes religion. Same as “Christian nationalism” in the US, like Hindutva in India, like all kinds of Islamism, like Francoism or like any other clerical fascism. We should be better than to accept the weaponized forms of religions. Unless you consider something as silly as “Mohammed was a pedophile” as a useful counter to Daesh, which is terminally unserious.
Can’t we just hate all religion equally?
The problem with this statement is both outlooks are true. Some jews see the chosen people story as an intergenerational responsibility to unfuck the world. While others see it as inheriting the world and all that is on it.
even though the theology of it is a lot more like “that is your god, and you belong to his people. it’s a lot of responsibility, he throws tantrums a lot”
They made a choice. Let’s see how they handle the consequences
What consequences? That they won’t win this year either?
Oh, you mean the EBU probably. One of the Big 5 leaving is really something. I can’t imagine Spain leaving the EBU itself though.
One of the Big Five (they are the largest financial contributors) leaving is, financially, indeed something.
As the ESC is only one part of the EBU (yet the most prominent one for the public) beside sharing of media, news and technical collaboration, leaving the EBU completely over the israeli participation at the ESC would give that occassion way too much relevance.
The countries that dropped out? OK, let’s see the consequences…
The fact that this was up for debate, the fact that there are countries that choose to boycott as a result, the fact that this is news: these are wins people. The cracks have formed and it’s starting to buckle. It is now normal and mainstream to talk about boycotting the genocidal Israeli apartheid regime. Even the German apartheid-apologist institutions are forced to say they respect the decisions of non-apologist ones. Don’t take this as reason for cynicism and disappointment, it’s quite the opposite! Apartheid South Africa didn’t get boycotted, isolated and forced to recon with its crimes all at once, it was a process. KEEP PUSHING!
The main sponsor of the show, Moroccanoil, is an Israeli company. This was obvious.
Moroccan Oil is an Israeli company?
The boycotting countries should stay in and sing about how israeli’s are genocidal murderers.
Political songs are not allowed
Except for all those times when Israel made songs about heroically blowing up children
Can you name any examples of that?
all art is political. making non political art is just slop production.
I hope more broadcasters drop out. Either it’ll force their hand to expel all genocidal nations or make Eurovision a joke and viewership crashes.
Ireland, Netherlands, Spain, and Slovenia should make their own Eurovision
israel is NOT even in europe. seriously!
We have the same discussion every year and the European Broadcast Union is not restricted to countries in Europe.
At least it’s in the vicinity, unlike Australia.
Cowards
I think its great that countries are excluding themselves on this basis.
However, im not surprised that the contest has remained agnostic and that israel has not withdrawn.
They should have their own contest with blackjack and hookers
We will not be watching and I’ll be sharing all the better alternatives to it. Like not supporting murder, genocide, state supported rapes, starving children, burning aid and many many more.
Ah yes, Israel, the European
countrysettler colonialist state.So European countries are dropping out while the non European Israel can continue.
Mmmmm, one wonders how that happened. One also wonders if these people that decided to boycott Eurovision over this are antisemitesor just people with a heart.
Fuck the Israeli government.
Jail Netanyahu, retreat all your forces back into Israel, allow an independent Palestinian state, pay reparations to Palestine state, beg all Palestinians forgiveness for your 5+ decades crimes, then beg the world for forgiveness for calling everyone that protested their crimes and antisemite, and then maybe maybe maybe they should be allowed back into the world.
Unfortunately with how the Dutch public broadcasting system works Eurovision wil still be broadcasted in the Netherlands. AVROTROS is an independent public broadcasting organization however it broadcasts it’s programming via the NPO the Dutch public broadcasting governing body. And NPO is also a member of EBU so the next Eurovision will be broadcasted by the NPO.
