Music
ESC: Israel sings inside, water cannon drives outside
Israel’s participation in the ESC divides the mind. There are protests inside and outside the hall. Yuval Raphael bravely sings.
The Israeli representative Yuval Raphael confidently brought her appearance at the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) in Basel between boos and energetic applause.
With the start of her song “New Day Will Rise”, boos and whistles from the audience were also heard. But the hall also filled the hall, Raphael smiled proudly at the end of the appearance. 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.
“Adjusted to all possible scenarios”
The officials later went out of 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.
dpa
Source: Stern
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
