Israel To Compete In Eurovision
By RT News
Israel will be allowed to compete in the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest, organizers announced, amid calls to ban the country from participating over the Israel-Hamas war.
More than a thousand Swedish musicians, including Greta Thunberg’s mother, signed a letter demanding Israel be excluded from the competition, which will be hosted in Sweden.
“We understand the concerns and deeply held views around the current conflict in the Middle East,” Noel Curran of the European Broadcasting Union said.
He added Eurovision is “not a contest between governments.”
Israel will be represented by 20-year-old Eden Golan, who was born in Israel but spent 13 years of her life in Russia. She moved back to Israel in 2022.
Many of the critiques of Israel’s participation point to the hypocrisy of allowing Israel to participate, but banning Russia.
“Comparisons between wars and conflicts are complex and difficult and, as a nonpolitical media organization, not ours to make,” Curran said.
