The next Eurovision Song Contest will take place in May 2024 in Sweden. The decision to include Israel in the competition is causing considerable anger and calls for a boycott online. Due to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, voices are being raised on social media that the country should be excluded from the ESC 2024.
ESC boycott calls via X
Under the hashtag #banisraelfromesc (in German: “ban Israel from the ESC”), users on X share their resentment over Israel’s participation in the competition. “I 100% boycott the Eurovision Song Contest because they chose to include Israel and Azerbaijan despite their atrocities and crimes against humanity. What a disgusting organization,” wrote one X user.
What almost all of these critics have in common is that they ignore the side of the Israeli deaths. The Gaza conflict only flared up after the terrorist attacks by Hamas, which carried out a massacre on October 7, killing more than 1,200 Israelis, including women, children and the elderly.
The EBU statement on Israel’s participation
Despite the protests, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) released a statement saying they currently have no plans to exclude Israel from the Eurovision Song Contest. “The Eurovision Song Contest is a competition for public broadcasters from across Europe and the Middle East. It is a competition for broadcasters – not governments – and the Israel Broadcasting Corporation has been participating in the competition for 50 years. The EBU is a member-led organization. The governing bodies of the EBU – under the leadership of the Board – represent the members. These bodies evaluated the list of participating countries and determined that the Israel Broadcasting Corporation complied with all competition rules. Together with 36 other broadcasters, it will be able to take part in the competition next year,” the statement said.