ESC: incident on the edge of Israel’s appearance

There was an incident on the edge of Israel’s appearance at the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) in Basel. « At the end of the Israeli appearance, a man and a woman tried to get on the stage through the barrier, » said a spokesman for Swiss television SRF. There, Yuval Raphael Israel’s contribution « New Day Will Rise » was presenting, while boos and energetic applause from the audience were heard.

The activists were stopped, according to the SRF. « One of the two people threw in color and a member of the crew was hit. The crew member is doing well and nobody was injured. The man and the woman were accompanied from the hall and handed over to the police. » According to the independent news blog « ESC compact », red color – obviously as a symbol of blood – was sprayed and met people in the audience

At the end of the performance, Raphael smiled confidently. In addition to Israel flags, there was also at least one Palestine flag in the audience. Israeli participation caused criticism because of the Gaza War.

Police put water cannons in position

While the music party continued with other acts in the hall, the situation on the streets of Basel continued to heat up. Several hundred people went through the city center to demonstrate against Israel’s participation in the competition. The police opposed the rally to prevent people from moving towards the event area. The police formed barriers and at times threatened the use of a water cannon. The uniformeds started with personal checks in the demo. The demonstration train was dissolved late in the evening.

« Intended on all possible scenarios »

The officials assumed 500 participants in the protest. Some people ignited torches with colorful smoke. The police are prepared for all possible scenarios, said a spokesman. In view of the geopolitical situation and the participation of Israel, protest was also expected.

Activists carried English -language banners with messages such as « Freedom for your vision – united for Palestine » (Liberate Your Vision – United for Palestine) or « do not give the genocide » (No Stage for Genocide). In speech choirs, the protesters called: « Shame on you » (shame on you), « Freedom for Palestine » (Free Palestine) and « boycotted Israel, boycotted Basel ».

Israel’s representative Raphael was repeatedly exposed to criticism in Basel – because of her country’s offensive in the Gaza Strip. The war against the Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas in the Gaza Strip with tens of thousands of fatalities was triggered by a Hamas terrorist wave in October 2023. Yuval Raphael survived these attacks as a visitor to the Nova music festival, hidden for hours.

Last year protests against Israel’s participation overshadowed the ESC in Malmö.