Calls for Israel’s suspension from Eurovision have grown since the launch of Israel’s war on Gaza in 2023 [Getty]
Amnesty International has joined calls for Israel to be suspended from the Eurovision Song Contest over the state’s treatment of Palestinians and the ongoing genocide in Gaza.
The rights watchdog’s statement came ahead of Israel’s participation in the competition’s semi-finals, which take place on Tuesday and Thursday.
“The failure of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to suspend Israel from Eurovision, as it did with Russia, is an act of cowardice and an illustration of blatant double standards when it comes to Israel,” said Amnesty Secretary General Agnès Callamard.
“Instead of sending a clear message that there is a cost for Israel’s atrocity crimes against the Palestinian people, the EBU has given Israel this international stage even as it continues to commit genocide in Gaza, unlawful occupation and apartheid.”
Callamard accused the EBU of ignoring protests against Israel’s participation by Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia, and Iceland, which withdrew from the contest.
“Songs and sequins must not be allowed to drown out or distract from Israel’s atrocities or Palestinian suffering. There should be no stage for Israel at Eurovision while there is an ongoing genocide,” she said.
“Israel’s impunity can no longer be tolerated, and people everywhere must act in accordance with their conscience and stand up for human rights.”
In its statement, Amnesty said that Israel’s genocide of Palestinians is ongoing despite the October ceasefire, with more than 760 Palestinians having been killed since then.
Francesca Albanese, the UN’s Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian Territories, joined Amnesty in calling for Israel’s suspension from the competition.
“I join Amnesty International in condemning #Eurovision and call everyone with a conscience not to watch it. BIG THANK YOU to the 5 countries who withdrew from the competition: Iceland! Ireland! Netherlands! Slovenia! Spain! Put Apartheid out of our lives,” Albanese wrote.
Calls for Israel to be removed from the Eurovision Song Contest have intensified since the launch of the war on Gaza in late 2023. The dispute has increasingly spilled onto the Eurovision stage, with protests, audience disruptions and broadcaster criticism accompanying Israeli performances.
Israel, meanwhile, has doubled down on its participation in the competition, viewing success on the stage as a coup for the country’s international image.
Last week, The New York Times reported that Israel ran a coordinated, government-backed campaign to transform Eurovision into a soft-power tool, spending more than $1 million promoting its contestants while lobbying to remain in the contest.
The Times found that Eurovision’s voting system made the contest highly vulnerable to coordinated influence campaigns because viewers were allowed to cast multiple paid votes.
This week, Eurovision issued a formal warning to Israeli broadcaster KAN after it published multilingual videos urging viewers to “vote 10 times” for Israel’s 2026 entry, Noam Bettan, during the first semifinal.
