Following reports earlier this week that Eurovision organisers were concerned over the Israeli government’s politicisation of Eurovision 2019, Israeli media is now reporting that the EBU will take Eurovision away from Jerusalem if countries choose to boycott the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest.
Politics are the core issue
This morning’s reports originated on Israeli Channel Ten’s news programme Hatzinor. In the programme, the report claims that “secret” meetings are taking place between the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation (IPBC) and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). The central issue of these meetings is the political matters and, according to the EBU, this is the reason for the current indecision regarding the host city for Eurovision 2019.
The report continues to say that the EBU’s goal is to be able to hold next year’s Eurovision Song Contest without causing countries to boycott and refuse to send their artists to Jerusalem. As explained by Maariv.co.il, a number of nations including Ireland, Sweden and the United Kingdom have already had stakeholders petitioning for their nations to boycott. Most notably, a petition amongst Icelanders has received thousands of signatures which has delayed RÚV from confirming their participation.
The bottom line
According to this report, the bottom line is that the EBU have told Israeli organisers that “if the participating countries refuse to participate, Eurovision 2019 will not take place in Jerusalem”.
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