List Growing Longer: Another Country Boycotts Eurovision
The Dutch broadcasting company AVROTROS announced today that the Netherlands will boycott the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 if Israel is allowed to participate, citing the Israeli war in the Gaza Strip as the reason.
"AVROTROS can no longer justify Israel's participation in the current situation, given the ongoing and severe human suffering in Gaza," the company's statement said – reports Sombor.info.
AVROTROS stated that it had held talks with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) regarding Israel’s participation in 2026, and also expressed concern over the "serious erosion of press freedom" through the Israeli government’s interference in last year’s edition, claiming that the event was used as a "political instrument," reports NL Times.
The Netherlands is the fifth country to threaten a boycott of Eurovision if Israel participates, following earlier announcements by Iceland, Spain, Slovenia, and Ireland.
In the past two years, because of Israel’s participation, this music competition has been marked by pro-Palestinian protests, and last year the victory went to the Israeli representative, which raised questions about the way the performance had been promoted beforehand.
