Ireland, Spain and Netherlands quit Eurovision Song Contest after Israel was allowed to stay in competition

The national broadcasters of Ireland, Spain and the Netherlands have announced that they will boycott the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest after the European Broadcasting Union decided to allow Israel to participate in the upcoming competition.

The three countries were among several parties that have called for Israel’s exclusion, citing the heavy human toll in Gaza and accusations of unfair voting practices.

Earlier, Eurovision said on Thursday it would not hold a vote on Israel’s participation in the musical contest, dodging calls for the regime’s ban over its ongoing crimes in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

The decision prompted the three broadcasters to confirm their withdrawal, stating that it does not reflect the ethical values the contest should uphold.

Other international bodies, such as the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) have also sidestepped calls to bar Israel from participation in competitions over its genocide in Gaza.

Critics say those refusals point to double standards that have shielded Israel from accountability. They cited past actions against countries, such as Russia, which was swiftly banned by FIFA and UEFA within days of Russia’s attack on Ukraine in 2022.

Since October 2023, the Israeli army has killed at least 70,117 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and injured 170,999 others in the two-year war in Gaza that has reduced much of the coastal sliver to rubble.

Hamas urges global action after report of Palestinians buried in unmarked graves

Hamas urges global action after an investigation uncovered that Israeli forces bulldozed dead Palestinians and buried them in shallow graves in Gaza.

A United Nations Commission of Inquiry (CoI), established by the UN Human Rights Council, concluded that Israeli authorities “intended to kill as many Palestinians as possible” and have committed the crime against humanity of extermination.

According to the “most authoritative assessment” to date, Israel has committed and is continuing to commit genocide in Gaza.

The report cited direct targeting of civilians, including children, and mass killings in “far larger numbers" compared to previous wars.

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