The European Broadcasting Union decided, during its general assembly meeting on Thursday, to allow Israel to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 in Vienna next year, after voting on new rules regulating participation, despite opposition from countries that demanded Tel Aviv be excluded due to the war of extermination it is committing in Gaza.
The European Union's decision to approve Israel's participation in Eurovision 2026 sparked angry reactions from several broadcasting bodies, including the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT). Slovenia, the Netherlands, Spain, and Ireland also announced their withdrawal from the competition for reasons described as "moral".
The meeting witnessed strong objections from the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT), which demanded that Israel be excluded from the competition because of its ongoing war in Gaza, and stressed that Israel has long been carrying out a systematic war of extermination against civilians in Palestine.
TRT, as one of the founding members of the union, said that the situation in Gaza makes Israel’s participation incompatible with the values of the Eurovision competition.
The statement from the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation delegation read: “Like everyone in this hall, we at TRT have witnessed decades of persecution and genocide unfolding before the eyes of the world.” It added: “Since the so-called ceasefire began, dozens of children have been killed and aid still does not reach Gaza safely. More than 270 journalists have also been killed by Israel.”
The statement from the Turkish delegation continued: “TRT’s position is clear: the participation of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation in the competition is not appropriate and does not conform to the values of the competition, and therefore should not be allowed.”
Following TRT’s strongly worded statement, several European broadcasting bodies issued angry statements, and Slovenia, the Netherlands, Spain and Ireland announced their withdrawal from the competition. The TRT delegation also left the meeting room in protest when the representative of the Israeli Broadcasting Authority took the floor.
Spain announced that it will not participate in Eurovision 2026 and will not broadcast its events, due to Israel's use of the competition for political purposes. The Secretary General of the Spanish Radio and Television Authority (RTVE), Alfonso Morales, said in a statement that "the current situation in the Gaza Strip, despite the ceasefire, and Israel's use of the competition for political purposes, makes it more difficult to maintain Eurovision as a neutral cultural event."
The Dutch public broadcaster AVROTROS also confirmed in a statement its withdrawal from the competition, noting that Israel’s participation, along with the humanitarian situation (resulting from the Israeli war of extermination) in Gaza and Tel Aviv’s restrictions on press freedom in the sector, contradicts the organization’s core values, according to the same statement.
In a similar move, the Irish broadcaster RTE announced that it would not participate in or broadcast the competition, stressing in a statement that the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza and Israeli attacks targeting journalists were contrary to the organization's principles.
The statement added that "the Commission believes that Ireland's participation remains unacceptable in light of the heavy loss of life in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis that continues to endanger the lives of many civilians."
Among the angry reactions to Israel's participation in the competition, the Slovenian Broadcasting Corporation "RTV Slovenia" announced that it would not participate in the competition.
Speaking on behalf of its president, Natalia Gorsak, the organization said: "Our message is that we will not participate in the Eurovision Song Contest if Israel participates, in commemoration of the 20,000 children who were victims in Gaza."
With American support, Israel launched a war of extermination in Gaza on October 7, 2023, leaving more than 70,000 martyrs and more than 171,000 wounded Palestinians, most of them children and women.
