Eurovision Organisers Speak Out After Broadcasters Hold Discussions About Israel's Involvement
Israel's involvement in Eurovision has long been a controversial issue due to the political situation in the Middle East.
However, in the last few years, some fans have been calling for Israel's expulsion from the competition due to the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
In the lead-up to this year's event, many public figures associated with the contest – including then-reigning winner Nemo from Switzerland – urged organisers to ban Israel from Eurovision, similar to how Russia has been excluded since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
National broadcasters for Iceland, Ireland, Slovenia and Spain have all raised questions about Israel's participation in Eurovision in the last few months. The Palestine-led BDS movement has also called for a boycott of the competition for the last two years.
Earlier this week, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) held a meeting with its participating national broadcasters in London, to discuss several issues relating to the Eurovision Song Contest, including whether Israel should be invited back in 2026.
A statement released on Thursday said: 'At today's EBU General Assembly, Members held an open and constructive discussion on the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) and the increasingly complex global context in which it takes place.
'The Assembly was a chance to celebrate the success of ESC 2025 - not just in terms of its record-breaking reach and engagement but in terms of its cultural resonance and ability to foster inclusivity, creativity, and a sense of belonging on a world stage.
'But of course, despite its extraordinary success, the Eurovision Song Contest, like many other events, is not immune to the pressures of global politics. Questions around participation have become increasingly sensitive and multifaceted, and our Members hold a wide range of perspectives on these issues which they were able to express in detail today.'
The statement continued: 'Members had a constructive exchange of views. There was a shared understanding that this is an unprecedentedly complex situation and there is a wide diversity of opinions.
'Members also expressed their support for the work of the Israeli public broadcaster Kan and its independence, noting the pressure it is repeatedly experiencing from the Israeli government.'
'To help us navigate the current landscape, a former senior TV executive has now been invited to lead a structured and in-depth dialogue with our Member broadcasters in the coming weeks,' the EBU's spokesperson concluded. 'They will engage with Directors General and other stakeholders to gather insights on how we manage participation, geopolitical tensions, and how other organisations have approached similar challenges. They will report back with recommendations this autumn.'
According to the English-language Israeli news site Ynet, the debate on Thursday lasted around 90 minutes, with Austria, Germany and Switzerland's broadcasters being the only ones to vocally back Israel's participation next year.
It was also claimed that the BBC had 'called to avoid a vote' on the matter, and 'instead supported further dialogue'. In the end, no vote took place, although so-called EBU 'sources' apparently told Ynet that 'further discussions will be inevitable' if the war continues.
Eurovision previously said: 'We understand the concerns and deeply held views around the current conflict in the Middle East.
'The EBU is not immune to global events but, together with our members, it is our role to ensure the Contest remains – at its heart – a universal event that promotes connections, diversity and inclusion through music.
'We all aspire to keep the Eurovision Song Contest positive and inclusive and aspire to show the world as it could be, rather than how it necessarily is.'
They added: 'As a reminder, the EBU is an association of public service broadcasters, not governments, who are all eligible to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest every year if they meet the requisite requirements. It is not our role to make comparisons between conflicts.'
Reigning Eurovision Winner JJ Calls For Israel To Be Removed From The Contest
Remember Monday Speak Out About Getting Zero Points From Eurovision Viewers
Eurovision Organisers Confirm Spanish Broadcaster Was Spoken To Over Pro-Palestine Message
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Wall Street Journal
41 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
New Gaza Cease-Fire Deal Would Come With U.S. Assurances on Talks to End War
Hamas is weighing a proposed new 60-day cease-fire and hostage-release deal in Gaza that, if signed, would immediately trigger American-backed negotiations between the militants and Israel aimed at a permanent end to the war, Arab officials involved in the talks said. The terms of the new proposal, put together by U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff along with mediators from Egypt and Qatar, also call for, among other things, the exchange of 10 living hostages for a larger number of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, the officials said.
Washington Post
an hour ago
- Washington Post
Don't believe the conventional wisdom. Ukraine can still lose.
PARIS — Soviet losses in World War II exceeded those of all other Allied forces combined and were roughly double those of Nazi Germany, whose capital, Berlin, ultimately fell to Red Army troops. Keep that in mind when you hear that Moscow can't possibly sustain the colossal military and economic costs it is suffering from the Ukrainian bloodbath Russian President Vladimir Putin initiated three years ago in pursuit of his neo-imperial fever dream. It can.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Britain ‘vulnerable' after Labour reversals, warns credit ratings giant
Britain's public finances have been left 'vulnerable' by Sir Keir Starmer's about-turn on welfare cuts, the world's largest credit ratings agency has warned. S&P Global said the inability to make 'modest cuts' to the welfare budget showed Rachel Reeves faced a 'formidable political challenge' to keep spending under control. 'In our view, it remains to be seen whether the Government succeeds in following through on its wider plans for keeping public spending in check as announced in the June 2025 spending review,' the agency told clients. A failure to rein in runaway public spending could leave Britain ill-prepared for future potential financial crises. S&P warned that the Government had shown an inability to tackle spending, including the proposed £5bn welfare cut, meaning it had 'very limited budgetary room for manoeuvre'. The agency said high spending would also keep government borrowing costs higher for longer as the UK's credit rating would not improve until its finances were in check. It said: 'We consider the UK's fiscal position as vulnerable and one of the key constraints on our 'AA' sovereign rating. We expect that UK budgetary consolidation will remain a slow process.' Sir Keir was forced to gut planned welfare reforms to avoid an embarrassing defeat in the Commons on Tuesday. The 11th-hour climbdown means the legislation will deliver no savings and will blow a £5bn hole in Ms Reeves's budget. S&P Global said the episode had brought into question whether the Chancellor could balance the nation's books as planned. The credit ratings agency expects the UK deficit to be reduced only slightly from 5.9pc of GDP last year to 5.5pc this year. Ratings agencies are used by the world's investors to assess the creditworthiness of borrowers, including countries. The industry is dominated by just three companies, of which S&P Global is the world's biggest. As such, its verdict on Britain's finances is hugely influential. S&P's update does not suggest it is considering changing the UK's current credit rating. However, it will be seen as a warning to the Government about the urgency with which it must tackle the public finances. It comes a day after major bond investor Legal & General warned that repeated policy changes from Labour had shaken investors' faith in the Government's plans. The cost of government borrowing on Friday remained higher than before Tuesday's vote on the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill. The yield on 10-year UK gilts – a benchmark for the cost of servicing the national debt – stood at 4.53pc, compared to 4.45pc before Tuesday's vote. Jack Meaning, an economist at Barclays, said extra spending on benefits and anticipated cuts to the growth outlook meant 'the Chancellor's fiscal rules [were] highly likely to be breached at the autumn Budget'. 'The fragility of the fiscal position has come into focus, making tax increases in the autumn almost inevitable,' he said, predicting an extension to the long freeze to income tax thresholds. Salman Ahmed, at investment giant Fidelity International, by contrast said the Chancellor may put off balancing the books in the autumn and instead hope for growth to come to the rescue. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
