Ireland, Spain, Slovenia and the Netherlands will boycott next year’s Eurovision song contest after organisers confirmed Israel can participate.
Broadcasters cited the number of people killed in Gaza and accused Israel of flouting rules meant to guard the contest’s neutrality. Israel accuses its critics of mounting a global smear campaign against it.
The Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), which has Australian broadcast rights for Eurovision 2026, has issued a statement saying participation in and coverage of Eurovision will continue next year.
“Our position remains that, as a public broadcaster, making a decision to be involved based on the inclusion or exclusion of any country would undermine SBS’s editorial independence and impartiality,” a spokesperson said.
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