Four European nations – Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia, and Spain – have announced their withdrawal from the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest following the confirmation of Israel’s participation.
Slovenian broadcaster RTV stated its decision was made "on behalf of the 20,000 children who died in Gaza," while Ireland’s national broadcaster RTE deemed participation "unconscionable given the appalling loss of lives in Gaza."
These developments follow a series of events over the past two competitions.
2024 Eurovision Song Contest
Israel’s participation in the 2024 competition, held in Malmo, Sweden, in May, attracted criticism in the wake of the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza.
UK entry Olly Alexander and Ireland’s Bambie Thug, along with other Eurovision artists, released a joint statement ahead of the competition backing “an immediate and lasting ceasefire” in Gaza but refused to boycott the event.
During the week-long competition, pro-Palestinian protesters showed their support for Gaza and condemned Israel’s participation, while Israeli contestant Eden Golan’s performances were met with a mixture of boos and cheers.
Golan’s emotional song Hurricane was reworked from a previous track called October Rain, which was thought to reference the Hamas attacks on Israel that sparked the conflict.
Ahead of Golan’s performance in the semi-final, Swedish police estimated between 10,000 to 12,000 pro-Palestinian people, including climate campaigner Greta Thunberg marched through the city of Malmo.
During the demonstrations, smoke canisters in the colours of the Palestinian flag were set off and protesters, some of whom had dogs, young children and bicycles with them, were carrying signs displaying images of Gaza civilians who have been injured amid the Hamas-Israel conflict.
The national broadcaster for Israel claimed its delegation faced “an unprecedented display of hatred” from other countries and their entrants during the contest.
– May 15, 2025
Israel’s entry for 2025 Yuval Raphael is “disrupted” during her rehearsal for the second semi-final by six people with “oversized flags and whistles”.
– May 18, 2025
Austria’s JJ won the 2025 contest with the emotional song Wasted Love while Raphael finished as runner-up.
Raphael, who is an October 7 survivor, was left “shaken and upset” after pro-Palestinian protesters rushed towards a barrier when she was on stage, her team said.
During the incident, a crew member was hit with paint after two pro-Palestinian protesters attempted to disrupt Raphael as she sang her entry New Day Will Rise.
Meanwhile, about 800 pro-Palestinian protesters demonstrated against Israel’s inclusion near a free concert in the centre of Basel on the day of the final, while a small group nearby protested with Israeli flags.
The group advocating for Israel to be removed from the singing competition later moved across Basel towards the Eurovision Village, where they were met by a significant police presence and tear gas was used.
– September 2025
Ireland announced it will not take part in the 2026 contest if Israel participates.
Irish broadcaster RTE said a final decision on participation would be made when the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) makes its decision and added that Ireland’s participation would be “unconscionable given the ongoing and appalling loss of lives in Gaza”.
Spain, the Netherlands and Slovenia also threatened to withdraw unless Israel was excluded over the war in Gaza.
– December 4, 2025
Ireland, The Netherlands, Spain and Slovenia announced they will boycott the 2026 singing competition, after the general assembly met in Geneva on Thursday to discuss the future of the competition.
The 2026 contest will be held in Vienna.
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