Despite calls for a boycott, Israel is taking part in the 2025 edition of Eurovision and will be represented by Yuval Raphael, who will be performing her song ‘New Day Will Rise’.
Raphael is a survivor of the Nova Music Festival attack on 7 October 2023, in which 378 individuals were killed.
In a recent interview, she shared that she has been practicising performing with distractions, including booing, in the run-up to the finale.
“Yeah, I think I’m expecting it,” Raphael told the BBC – in reference to anticipating boos. “But we’re here to sing and I’m going to sing my heart out to everyone.”
“I had a few rehearsals where we put sounds (in), so I can practice when there are distractions in the background,” she added.
The expectation of backlash during the set comes following Israeli singer Eden Golan being booed as she sang at last year’s competition, and calls this year to have Israel and the country’s national broadcaster KAN banned from this year’s Eurovision - including from more than 70 former Eurovision contestants.
Discussing the controversy around Israel’s inclusion at Eurovision, Raphael shared: “Everybody has opinions. I’m really putting everything aside and just concentrating on the most important thing. The slogan this year is ‘united by music’ and that’s what we are here for.”
She added: “It was scary at times, even uncomfortable, but it makes me keep reminding myself why I’m here and my agenda, which is spreading as much love as I can and bringing pride to my country.”
The recent letter calling for Israel to be banned from Eurovision reads: “[We] urge all members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to demand the exclusion of KAN, the Israeli public broadcaster, from the Eurovision Song Contest. KAN is complicit in Israel’s genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza and the decades-long regime of apartheid and military occupation against the entire Palestinian people.”
“By continuing to platform the representation of the Israeli state, the EBU is normalising and whitewashing its crimes,” the letter continues. “The EBU has already demonstrated that it is capable of taking measures, as in 2022, when it expelled Russia from the competition. We don’t accept this double standard regarding Israel.”
“As singers, songwriters, musicians and others who have had the privilege of participating in Eurovision, we urge the EBU and all its member broadcasters to act now and prevent further discredit and disruption to the festival: Israel must be excluded from Eurovision.”
You can read the letter in full on Artists For Palestine UK’s website here.
There were several campaigns to block Israel from taking part in the Eurovision song contest last year, but the EBU ruled Israel was allowed to compete – provided the country’s contestant amended her song 'October Rain' due to its perceived lyrical references to the 7 October attacks.
KAN received heavy criticism last year for its delegation’s alleged treatment of contestants – specifically Irish contestant Bambie Thug, who accused the network of “inciting violence” against her.
The grand final of this year's Eurovision Song Contest will take place in Basel, Switzerland, on Saturday 17 May. The semi-finals take place on Tuesday 13 and Thursday 15 May.
