By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
MALMÖ/JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – Europe voted to have Israel in the grand final of Eurovision, the world’s largest televised song contest, in a setback for anti-Israel protesters. Israel’s 20-year-old Eden Golan impressed millions of viewers with her song “Hurricane.”
In a statement, the solo singer said she was “proud to represent my country.”
There have been several campaigns to block Israel from taking part in this year’s contest following the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war.
However, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which hosted the event, ruled that Israel could compete.
Yet, Golan had to change her song “Hurricane” after the original track “October Rain” was deemed to be a reference to the October 7 attacks when Hamas killed about 1,200 people in Israel and kidnapped hundreds.
Some 100,000 visitors gathered in the southern Swedish host city of Malmö for the annual kitsch-fest under heavy police presence as authorities braced for possible unrest.
Italy’s RAI television accidentally published the televoting outcome early, showing Israel receiving a whopping 39,31 percent of the vote. The rest was divided among the nine other countries, making it to the grand final on Saturday night, featuring performances from 26 countries.
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According to Italy’s tally, Switzerland and the Netherlands, two of the bookmakers’ favorites to win Eurovision 2024, also secured spots in Saturday’s grand final but with much fewer votes than Israel.
Ahead of Golan’s performance, pro-Palestinian protesters and a smaller number of pro-Israeli protesters took to the streets to protest her participation.
Climate activist Greta Thunberg, wearing a Palestinian, was among those attending the anti-Israel demonstration, which Swedish police estimated had as many as 12,000 participants.
The 21-year-old said they had a “moral obligation to act” and to speak out against Israel’s military operation in Gaza.
“If we are tens of thousands of people flooding the streets of Malmö when Eurovision is taking place, saying we will not accept this to continue, then it’s a very strong signal – and it does make a difference,” Thunberg said.
Another protester, Matilda Varatta, told reporters she wants to see Israel disqualified as Russia was in 2022 following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. “It’s not true that the Eurovision is not political; it has always been political, and it will always be,” she said.
Yet Golan said that she was “proud to represent my country” and that “nothing will deter” her, despite many booting during her rehearsal on Wednesday.
ISRAEL PROTEST
The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation organized the country’s contest entry and asked the European Broadcasting Union to prevent a repeat of Wednesday’s booing incident.
On Thursday, Worthy News heard loud applause and cheers during her performance, which several commentators described as stunning. Golan blew a kiss to the crowd after her performance in the second Eurovision semi-final on Thursday
Christians on the Worthy News channel on the social media platform Telegram indicated they had been praying for her and Israel.
There was some booing when it became clear that Israel qualified for the grand final, but it was less audible than the bursts of joy.
Ahead of Thursday’s performance, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wished Golan good luck and said she had “already won” after “successfully confronting” a “horrible wave of antisemitism” in Sweden.
At the pro-Israel demonstration, people could be heard singing Hurricane in support of Golan amid a significant police presence. “I’m not that interested in Eurovision,” one demonstrator, Yael Sages Wahlström, told Sweden’s Svenska Dagbladet newspaper. “But since there has been such a huge storm. of hate against Israel, I wanted to support”
The Italian RAI TV results were:
39.31% Israel
7.32% Netherlands
6.68% Albania
6.64% Georgia
6.03% Switzerland
5.83% Armenia
5.29% Greece
3.54% San Marino
2.93% Denmark
2.91% Latvia
2.84% Austria
2.80% Estonia
2.48% Czechia
2.19% Malta
1.68% Belgium
1.55% Norway
Copyright 1999-2024 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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