Dublin (QNN)- Ireland has become the second country, after the Netherlands, to announce a boycott of next year’s Eurovision Song Contest over Israel’s participation amid the Gaza genocide.
Irish public broadcaster RTE said in a statement on Thursday that the country’s participation could not be justified “given the appalling and ongoing loss of lives in Gaza” and that the humanitarian crisis in the enclave “continues to put the lives of so many civilians at risk”.
RTE, which manages Ireland’s selection and participation in Eurovision, added that it remained “deeply concerned by the continued denial of independent access [for] international journalists to the territory”.
The decision marks the second consecutive year that Ireland will neither participate in nor broadcast the competition, which is the world’s most popular television music show.
Earlier this month, Eurovision organisers said they would exclude any country involved in an armed conflict from hosting the competition.
However, Dutch public broadcaster AVROTROS said the measure was not “sufficient”.
The public broadcaster in the Netherlands, AVROTROS, announced last month that it was withdrawing from the 2027 competition.
It said Eurovision could “no longer be considered neutral” given Israel’s participation in “a large-scale military conflict” in Gaza.
Both Ireland and the Netherlands were among five countries that withdrew from Eurovision 2026 in Vienna earlier this year along with Spain, Slovenia and Iceland.
Sinn Fein, Ireland’s main opposition party, welcomed RTE’s decision. The party’s spokesperson for Culture, Communications and Sport, Joanna Byrne, told Al Jazeera that Israel’s behaviour “cannot be normalised”.
“RTE’s decision to again boycott the Eurovision Song Contest is the correct and principled decision in the face of Israel’s ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people,” Byrne said.
She added that Israel is an “apartheid state” and accused it of engaging in “ethnic cleansing”.
“Israel, as an aggressor nation just like Russia, should have been banned when they engaged in genocidal actions, just like Russia.”
The European Broadcasting Union, which organises the annual music competition, has faced accusations of applying a double standard for refusing to exclude Israel, despite banning Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Eurovision Director Martin Green said on Thursday that organisers “fully respect” Ireland’s decision and that they “will be missed”.
“The Eurovision Song Contest is at its best when broadcasters and their artists from different countries come together to share music, celebrate creativity and create connections between audiences,” Green said.
“That power to bring people together is at the heart of what makes the Contest so special, and is even more important now in an increasingly difficult and divided world.”
The widely-watched show has recently faced a series of boycotts over Israel’s participation.
This year’s competition pulled in 131 million viewers, 35 million fewer than last year, after the five countries boycotted it over Israel’s participation.
Thousands of protesters had gathered outside the venue in the Austrian capital during the final in mid-May to oppose Israel’s participation.
Next year’s Eurovision is due to be held in Bulgaria’s Black Sea city of Burgas, after Bulgarian singer Darina Yotova, known as Dara, won this year’s contest in Vienna, Austria, with her catchy floor-filler ‘Bangaranga’.
Tensions around Eurovision escalated last year when members of the EBU decided not to hold a vote on Israel’s participation. The decision followed internal disagreement and came during the Israeli genocide in Gaza. Several countries later boycotted the contest in protest.
This year’s edition recorded the lowest number of participating countries since 2004, reflecting increasing isolation for Israel.
The walk-outs were prompted by the decision of the organizing body to allow Israel to take part despite the genocide in Gaza.
International criticism of Eurovision’s pro-Israel stance has also grown. Several countries withdrew or reduced participation this year over Israel’s inclusion as it faces war crimes charges in the ICC and ICJ, while comparisons have been drawn to the 2022 exclusion of Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.
Critics argue that the difference in treatment raises questions about double standards in international cultural events. The issue has drawn wider media attention, including reporting by The New York Times on how Israel has used Eurovision for as a soft power during the Gaza genocide.
Over the past three years, Israel has faced objections to its participation in Eurovision not only by EBU members but also by contestants themselves.
