British Artists Co-Sign Open Letter Supporting Israel’s Place In Eurovision

Netta from Israel celebrates after winning the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest grand final in Lisbon, Portugal. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

Actress Helen Mirren and singer Boy George are among 400 artists who have signed an open letter supporting Israel’s participation in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest.

The move came against the backdrop of calls for a boycott due to the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict. More than 2,000 musicians from Finland, Iceland, and Sweden, signed a letter in December calling for Israel’s exclusion from the contest. Israel’s ambassador to Sweden, Ziv Nevo Kulman, slammed the boycott calls as a support for terrorism.

The open letter, organised by the Creative Community For Peace, reads: “We believe that unifying events such as singing competitions are crucial to help bridge our cultural divides and unite people of all backgrounds through their shared love of music.”

The letter argues that excluding Israel would transform Eurovision from “a celebration of unity into a tool of politics.”

Eurovision has historically prided itself on being a non-political event, although in 2022, due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) who run the event banned Russia from participating. Russia was originally set to perform in the second half of the first semi-final.