The 70th edition of the Eurovision Festival was held this Saturday in Vienna without Spain, Ireland, Iceland, Slovenia, and the Netherlands due to the presence of Israel in the contest. And precisely the Israeli representative Noam Bettan was the third to participate and did so without major incidents. Protests took place earlier in the Austrian capital, prior to the start of the final, when hundreds of pro-Palestinian demonstrators showed opposition to Israel’s participation. More than 70,000 people have died in Gaza due to Israeli army bombings since 2023.
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What happened in the final differs from what occurred in the first semifinal, when live shouts of “stop the genocide” were heard and several protesters were expelled from the venue. Additionally, Bettan had to rehearse his song amid whistles and boos to be prepared for the expected reaction of the live audience. The Israeli delegation was warned by the EBU last week over a video in which the singer asked for the audience’s vote, something prohibited by the festival’s new rules.
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Unlike other editions, the song performed by Noam Bettan does not have a possible double political reading this year. The artist is the son of French immigrants, sings in French, English, and Hebrew, and was accompanied by five dancers.
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