"Iceland has become the fifth county to announce it will boycott the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest, after Israel's participation in the competition was officially confirmed last week. Despite boycott threats from several broadcasters over Israel's actions in the war in Gaza, Israel's entry was cleared after members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) chose not to hold a vote on banning the country. Following the EBU's decision Spain, one of the so-called "Big Five" largest contributors to Eurovision, said it would boycott the 2026 event because of Israel's participation."
"On December 4, the EBU, which runs Eurovision and represents public broadcasters from 56 countries, held its twice-yearly meeting, where some members called for Israel's exclusion over alleged voting interference and its actions in the war in Gaza. The gathering decided to approve tougher voting rules in response to allegations that Israel had previously manipulated the vote in favor of its contestant. Eurovision's voting system faced scrutiny after Yuval Raphael, a survivor of Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel, jumped to second place in this year's public vote."
Iceland became the fifth country to announce a boycott of the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest following confirmation of Israel's participation. Spain, and host broadcasters in Ireland, the Netherlands and Slovenia also withdrew. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) decided not to hold a vote to exclude Israel and instead approved tougher voting rules amid allegations of previous vote manipulation. Concerns intensified after notable public-vote placements for Israeli artists despite low jury scores. Eurovision director Martin Green expressed respect for broadcasters' decisions and hope they will return in the future.
Read at www.dw.com
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