Public broadcasters from at least four countries, including Spain and the Netherlands, pulled out of next year's program on Thursday. Eurovision Song competition after organizers decided to allow Israel compete. The events show how political differences have become the focus of what is usually a joyful celebration of harmony through music.
The withdrawal, which was joined by Ireland and Slovenia, came after the general assembly of the European Broadcasting Union – the group of public service broadcasters from 56 countries that hosts the event – met to discuss concerns about Israel's participation, which some countries oppose over its conduct. conflict between Israel and Hamas.
EBU members had previously voted to adopt tougher voting rules in response to allegations that Israel manipulated voting to favor its rivals, but took no action to exclude any broadcaster from the competition.
The fun pop music gala, which attracts more than 100 million spectators each year, has been overshadowed by the conflict between Israel and Hamas for the past two years.
Meanwhile, a message on the website of Icelandic broadcaster RUV said they would meet next Wednesday to discuss whether Iceland would take part, after its board last week recommended that Israel be barred from the competition in Vienna next May.
In a statement emailed to The Associated Press, the broadcasters' union said it was aware that four broadcasters – RTVE in Spain, AVROTROS in the Netherlands, RTE in Ireland and Slovenia's RTVSLO – had publicly said they would not take part.
“We are awaiting official confirmation of their decision,” the union said. The final list of participating countries will be announced by Christmas.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog said at X that he was “delighted” that Israel would participate again and hoped that “the competition will remain one that champions culture, music, friendship between peoples and cross-border cultural understanding.”
“Thank you to all our friends who stood up for Israel's right to continue to contribute and compete at Eurovision,” he added.
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Austria, which is set to host the competition after Viennese singer JJ won this year with “Wasted Love”, supports Israel's participation. Germany is also said to support Israel.
However, Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS said Israel's involvement was “no longer compatible with the responsibility we have as a public broadcaster.”
Spain's state broadcaster RTVE echoed similar concerns, expressing “serious doubts about the participation of Israeli broadcaster KAN,” according to Secretary General Alfonso Morales.
Irish broadcaster RTÉ said Ireland's involvement “remains unconscionable given the appalling loss of life in the Gaza Strip” and the humanitarian crisis there.
Some of the broadcasters who run their country's news programs and wanted to keep Israel out of the mix cited the killing of journalists in the Gaza conflict and Israel's ongoing policy of barring international journalists from entering the territory.
Israeli broadcaster KAN chief executive Golan Yohpaz questioned whether EBU members were “ready to be part of a move that harms artistic freedom and freedom of expression.”
KAN officials said the Israeli broadcaster was not involved in any prohibited campaign aimed at influencing the results of the last song competition in Basel, Switzerland, last May, when Israel's Yuval Rafael took second place.
The EBU said the new rules would enhance “transparency and trust” and allow all countries, including Israel, to participate.
The competition, whose 70th edition is scheduled for May in Vienna, will pit artists from dozens of countries against each other for the continent's musical crown.
It strives to put pop music above politics, but has repeatedly found itself embroiled in world events. Russia was ousted in 2022 after a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The conflict between Israel and Hamas has become the biggest issue, with pro-Palestinian protesters demonstrating against Israel before the last two Eurovision Song Contests in Basel, Switzerland, in May and Malmo, Sweden, in 2024.
Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Spain had previously threatened to withdraw from the competition if Israel was allowed to participate.
Opponents of Israeli involvement point to the conflict between Israel and Hamas, which has killed more than 70,000 people, according to the territory's health ministry, which operates under the auspices of Hamas– run by the government and whose detailed reports are considered generally reliable by the international community.
The Israeli government has repeatedly defended its campaign as a response to attack by Hamas-led militants that started the war on October 7, 2023. As a result of the attack, the militants killed about 1,200 people (mostly civilians) and took 251 hostages.
A number of experts, including those commissioned by the UN body, have said that Israel's offensive in the Gaza Strip is tantamount to genocide. Israel, home to many Holocaust survivors and their relatives, strongly denies this claim.
It was previously unclear whether some broadcasters opposed to Israel's participation would be reassured by the reduction in violence in the Gaza Strip, where a US-brokered ceasefire is in place, or the EBU's planned plans to change voting procedures.
A boycott of some European broadcasters could have consequences for viewership and money at a time when many broadcasters are under financial pressure due to cuts in government funding and the rise of social media.
Those eliminated include some big names in the Eurovision world. Spain is one of the “big five” large market countries that contribute the most to the competition. Ireland have won seven times, a record they share with Sweden.
Controversy over Israel's participation in 2026 also threatens to overshadow the return next year of three countries – Bulgaria, Moldova and Romania – after periods of absence for financial and artistic reasons.
