Eurovision Organizers Push Back Vote on 2026 Israeli Participation in Wake of Gaza Peace Deal

On the aforesaid time that President Trump announced a historical woody to extremity the two-year warfare betwixt Israel and militant radical Hamas, the organizers of the yearly Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) said they volition postpone a ballot connected calls to prohibition Israel from adjacent year’s event.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Tuesday’s (Oct. 13) ESC members — comprised of European nationalist broadcasters that aerial the contention — were slated to clasp an exigency gathering successful November to ballot connected a petition by immoderate members to prohibition Israel from competing adjacent year. Broadcasters from Ireland and Spain person called for a boycott against Israel successful protestation of the Israeli army’s actions successful Gaza during the devastating two-year war; broadcasters successful different nations, including Germany and Austria, person opposed the ban.

The postponement of the ballot came the aftermath of Tuesday’s announcement by Trump of a bid deal, which included an contiguous ceasefire — which, astatine property time, appeared to beryllium holding — as good arsenic the instrumentality of the 20 surviving Israeli hostages and the merchandise of much than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners.

In the aftermath of the news, Eurovision said connected Tuesday that the committee had decided to postpone the ballot connected the boycott and volition sermon it successful “an unfastened and in-person discussion” during its regular wintertime wide assembly successful December. The planned November ballot was to find whether Israeli nationalist broadcaster and EBU (European Broadcasting Union) subordinate KAN would beryllium allowed to enactment successful the 2026 Eurovision. 

According to THR, an “absolute majority” of EBU members would beryllium required to ballot to instrumentality the ban, with Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Spain already threatening to beryllium retired adjacent year’s contention unless Israel is banned; the U.K.’s nationalist broadcaster, BBC, has not picked a broadside successful the matter.

The 69-year-old planetary popular contention known for its over-the-top performances, outrageous costuming and fierce regional/political rivalries is often 1 of the most-watched non-sports TV events of the twelvemonth astir the world. Though acts execute nether their nationalist emblem and voters determine whether the performers beforehand to the finale based connected nationalist loyalty, the planetary songwriting contention is billed arsenic a “non-political” event. Rules necessitate participating broadcasters to instrumentality each indispensable steps to marque definite their delegations and teams, “safeguard the interests and the integrity of the ESC and to marque definite that the ESC shall successful nary lawsuit beryllium politicized and/or instrumentalized and/or different brought into disrepute successful immoderate way.”

Israel has participated successful Eurovision since 1973 and Israeli singers person won 4 times, opening with Izhar Cohen and the Alphabeta successful 1978 with “A-Ba-Ni-Bi,” past again successful 1979 with Milk and Honey’s “Hallelujah,” 1998 with Dana International’s “Diva” and 2018 via Netta’s “Toy”; the state hosted Eurovision successful 1979, 1999 and 2019.

This year’s Israeli entry, Yuval Raphael, was the 2025 runner-up with the uplifting “New Day Will Rise.” Her opus was emblematic of the benignant of soaring, platitude-packed ballads that are the competition’s bread-and-butter. But “New Day Will Rise” resonat...