A vote on Israel’s participation was originally due to take place in November, but it was cancelled after the declaration of a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip on 10 October.
Roland Weissman, director general of Austrian broadcaster ORF – which will host next year’s contest in Vienna – subsequently travelled to Israel to meet with its Eurovision team and Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
There, he told reporters that Israel is “an inseparable part of Eurovision”.
Others disagree.
Spain, one of the “Big Five” countries that contribute significant funding and audiences to Eurovision, has pledged to withdraw if Israel competes, saying the country had used the competition politically.
Speaking to a parliamentary commission, the president of Spanish broadcaster RTVE said he felt Israel’s participation was “untenable”, calling its actions in Gaza a genocide.
“As President of the (RTVE) corporation, I keep thinking that Eurovision is a contest, but human rights are not a contest,” he said.
Israel has consistently denied accusations of genocide in Gaza, where the death toll has surpassed 70,000, according to Hamas-run health authorities.
If a vote against Israel were successful, Germany would probably withdraw and not broadcast the contest, a broadcasting industry source told the Reuters news agency.
Sources within Israeli broadcaster KAN said it believed discussions about excluding Israel were unjustified, asserting that KAN was in full compliance with EBU rules.
On Wednesday, pre-empting the EBU’s general meeting, the broadcaster issued a press release confirming it was pressing ahead with its preparations for the 2026 contest.
