More than 1,100 musicians and cultural workers have accused Eurovision of covering up the genocide.
On Monday, Dutch public broadcaster AVROTROS said that it will not participate in the 2027 Eurovision Song Contest, arguing that the event can “no longer be considered neutral” given the severe humanitarian suffering in Gaza.
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“It is undeniable that international conflicts are increasingly affecting the Contest, undermining its neutral character. The Eurovision Song Contest has therefore become a platform for division,” AVROTROS Director Taco Zimmerman said in a statement.
“AVROTROS criticized Eurovision organizers for failing to establish clear rules for countries involved in military conflicts, saying its continued participation was no longer consistent with the broadcaster’s values of “trustworthiness, independence and humanity,” RT reported.
“This year’s contest became embroiled in a series of scandals linked to Israel’s participation amid its continued military campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon. Five countries – Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland, and Slovenia – boycotted the event in May in protest against West Jerusalem’s actions.”
BREAKING: Israel just bombed a water desalination plant in northern Gaza.
Not a military base.
An essential infrastructure built to provide water to civilians suffering through an extreme water crisis.Gaza is running out of water.
This is an act of genocide. pic.twitter.com/9rFqzVxGnk
— sarah (@sahouraxo) August 24, 2026
“In April, more than 1,100 musicians and cultural workers, including Brian Eno, Massive Attack, Kneecap and Primal Scream, signed an open letter accusing Eurovision organizers of whitewashing what they described as “genocide” in Gaza. The contest was also accompanied by large pro-Palestinian protests in the host city of Vienna,” the Russian outlet recalled.
AVROTROS said in the statement that over the past year it had repeatedly called on the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organizes the Eurovision Song Contest, to establish transparent rules governing the participation of countries involved in military conflicts.
Earlier this month, the EBU updated its rules, saying that if a country involved in an armed conflict wins the competition, it will be ineligible to host it the following year. However, AVROTROS said “the recently announced changes by the EBU do not provide sufficient confidence that the independent and neutral character of the Eurovision Song Contest has been restored.”
teleSUR/ JF
Sources: Xinhua – RT
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