In a letter published in the British media The Independent72 former Eurovision participants ask to exclude the Israeli national chain Kan from the competition, due to the situation in Gaza.
Only a few days from the Eurovision final, a petition was published in the media columns The Independant Requesting the exclusion of Israel and Israeli Kan television from the European Union of Radiation (UER), an event organizer.
They are 72 former participants in the competition to accuse Kan of being “accomplice of the genocide perpetrated by Israel against the Palestinians of Gaza and the apartheid and military occupation regime which has lasted for decades against the whole of the Palestinian people”. Three French people are part of the signatories: La Zarra (2023), Jessy Matador (2010), and Marie Line (1998).
-Yuval Raphael with new day Will Rise
“We believe in the unifying power of music, which is why we refuse that music is used to exonerate crimes against humanity”is it possible to read. “By continuing to offer a showcase to the Israeli State, the UER normalizes its crimes. The UER has already demonstrated its ability to take measures, as in 2022, when it excluded Russia from the competition. We do not accept these two weights, two measures towards Israel”.
For this 2025 edition, Israel is represented by a survivor of October 7, Yuval Raphael, with New Day Will Rise (“A new day will rise”). Through music, she says she wants to carry a universal message “Hope and solidarity” in the competition, as reported Bfmtv
Last year, thousands of people demonstrated against the presence of the Hebrew state in the competition in the streets of Malmö in Sweden. Eden Golan, the candidate, had notably received many threats.
