Controversy is growing around the Eurovision Song Contest after a Spanish journalist has claimed he was intimidated by Israeli journalists.
The annual competition is takin place amid an increasingly tense political climate as the israeli-palestinian conflict continues on the Gaza Strip. This has led to multiple protests from Eurovision enthusiasts questioning and disagreeing with Israeli singer Eden Golan’s participation in the contest.
Eden qualified for the final of the Eurovision this Thursday, May 9, after a public vote but her victory came hours after pro-Palestinian protestors took to the streets of Malmö, where the final is due to take place on Saturday, May 11, to show their support for Gaza.
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Antti Aimo-Koivisto/REX/Shutterstock)
Unfortunately, things are only getting worse. On Friday, May 10, Spanish journalist and activist Juan Mafdez shared a troubling video on X, otherwise known as Twitter, admitting in his caption that he had “never felt so unsafe” at the Eurovision in his 11 years of experience covering the event.
“In the eleven years I’ve been covering Eurovision I’ve never felt so unsafe at the festival. Several Israeli journalists decided to intimidate and scold me for shouting #FreePalestine after the Israel-hell rehearsal”, Juan penned. “They’re not going to scare us. They are not going to silence us.”
Juan explained his gesture in his video, stating: “as a citizen, I believe we can’t stay silent.” But once he acted out, three Israeli journalists confronted him, ordering him out of the venue. The trio also threatened a social media storm against Juan by taking pictures of him.
Juan added: “I think we are being very respectful with them, we are simply pacifically protesting. We are not intimidating, we are not doing anything against them.”
This was enough for Eurovision’s Spanish delegation to release an official statement supporting the journalist after reaching out to the European Broadcasting Union. “The Spanish delegation from @eurovision_tve has conveyed to @EBU_HQ its commitment to freedom of the press and opinion and has demanded that @Eurovision ensure its respect.”
The news follows scandal backstage after Dutch act Joost Klein was said to be under investigation by the European Broadcasting Union. Joost was seen during the flag parade on Friday but vanished later on, failing to deliver his song on stage.
A statement was later shared with the PA, reading: “We are currently investigating an incident that was reported to us involving the Dutch artist. He will not be rehearsing until further notice. We have no further comment at this time and will update in due course.”
This followed a tense press conference during which Joost talked to Eden Golan, demanding she answered a question about whether her participation in the Eurovision was compromising the safety of her fellow contestants. Moments earlier, Joost was asked if his own song Europapa could unite people to which he bitterly replied: “I think that’s a good question for the EBU.”
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