Large-scale protest planned in Malmö as Israel performs in Eurovision semi-final

After a week of increased police presence in Malmö, Sweden amid the Eurovision Song Contest, a large-scale protest has been planned to coincide with Israel’s performance at the semi-final today.

The protest follows calls for Israel to be excluded from the contest amid their military operation on Gaza since October 7. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has consistently rejected these calls, highlighting that they are an apolitical member organisation.

Speaking on Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, Jean Philip De Tender, deputy director general of EBU said: "It’s about uniting onstage all of these young talents, these participants, and they do great. It’s about diversity and inclusion.

"But there are competition rules and you need to follow the competition rules and take decisions based on these competition rules.”

A large-scale pro-Gaza protest is therefore set to take place in Malmö this afternoon, organised by the umbrella group Stop Israel.

Artists from various Eurovision nations have been signing letters and joining demonstrations calling for Israel’s expulsion from the contest since late last year – citing hypocrisy after the EBU only took days to ban Russia two years ago in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine.

In Ireland, over 400 artists have signed an open letter addressed to Eurovision entrant Bambie Thug, calling for them to withdraw from this year’s contest.

On Tuesday, the Irish artist was among the ten acts qualifying from the first semi-final. They say they were ordered by the EBU to change their stage make-up in advance of last night's semi-final, in keeping with the competition’s rules against political statements.