Eurovision approves Israeli participation as Spain, Ireland, Netherlands and Slovenia withdraw in protest

The Eurovision Song Contest has approved Israeli participation in 2026, two European Broadcasting Union members informed Reuters on Thursday.

Anti-Israel campaigns have, since the Hamas October 7 massacre in 2023, falsely equated Israel with Russia and demanded its exclusion due to the Gaza war.

Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, and Slovenia responded to Eurovision’s decision on Israel by announcing their withdrawal and boycott of the 2026 competition, which will be held in May in Vienna, Austria.

"If no one was up in arms when Russia began its invasion, and it was exiled from global competitions and Eurovision, then the same should happen with Israel," Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez stated, repeating the false comparison between Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the Hamas-initiated Gaza war.

José Pablo López, the president of Spain's national broadcaster RTVE, argued that the decision on Israeli participation "never should have gotten to this point."

"Sanctions against Israel for its repeated violations in Eurovision should have been adopted at the executive level rather than shifting the conflict to the assembly. Today, the EBU will be a union more shaped by political and commercial interests, of a festival that they have not been able to, or have not wanted to, manage,” he claimed.

Spain has been one of Israel’s harshest critics in the West, and the Spanish prime minister has accused Israel of genocide in Gaza without providing any credible evidence.

The Dutch public broadcaster AVROTROS also announced that it would boycott next year’s Eurovision due to Israeli participation.

"After weighing all perspectives, AVROTROS concludes that, under the current circumstances, participation cannot be reconciled with the public values that are fundamental to our organization," the broadcaster said in a public statement, claiming that Israel’s self-defense against Hamas in Gaza “crossed a boundary” for the organization.

However, not all people in the Netherlands share the broadcaster’s anti-Israel position. The right-wing Dutch politician Geert Wilders, who supports Israel, condemned the broadcaster’s decision as "antisemitism and disgusting Israel hatred in its purest form."

The Irish public broadcasting union RTÉ went even further, announcing that Ireland would neither compete nor air the classic song contest due to Israel’s participation.

"RTÉ feels that Ireland’s 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. RTÉ remains deeply concerned by the targeted killing of journalists in Gaza during the conflict and the continued denial of access to international journalists to the territory," the broadcaster said in an official statement.

Slovenia Board Chairwoman Natalija Gorščak articulated similar sentiments against Israel.

"Our message is: we will not participate in the ESC if Israel is there. On behalf of the 20,000 children who died in Gaza," Gorščak said, repeating Hamas propaganda figures that have not been confirmed by any independent, reliable sources and ignoring that Hamas deliberately used Gazan civilians as human shields in violation of international law.

"Do not forget that we banned a similar performance by a Russian singer in Ukraine. In 2017, in Stockholm, we opened Pandora’s box when a political song won, and since then, we have been fighting against politics in Eurovision,” Gorščak continued, repeating the false comparison between Russia and Israel while ignoring that it was Hamas that invaded Israel on October 7, 2023.

Austria, which will host Eurovision 2026, has been rallying support for Israeli participation and rejected calls for boycotting it. Germany has also backed Israeli participation, and Berlin warned that it would boycott the event if Israel were excluded.

Speaking to Reuters, the German State for Culture Minister Wolfram Weimer said that Israel belongs in the Eurovision Song Contest.

"Israel belongs in the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC)," Weimer said. "There must be no ESC without Israel." Israel has participated in Eurovision since 1973 and has won the competition four times: 1978, 1979, 1998, and 2018.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar welcomed Eurovision’s announcement that Israel would participate next year. He also blasted the anti-Israel countries.

"I welcome the decision of the European Broadcasting Union. I am ashamed of those countries that chose to boycott a music competition like Eurovision because of Israel’s participation. The disgrace is upon them," Sa’ar wrote in a post on X.

Israeli Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar hailed Eurovision’s decision to include Israel.

“The European Broadcasting Union made the right decision by keeping Israel in Eurovision. Music connects people and countries, and I thank our partners for their broad support. The people of Israel will continue to create, connect, and illuminate the world," the minister stated.