\u201cHonestly, this is the time for diplomacy,\u201d he told reporters.<\/p>\n
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\t\t\t\tBy signing up, you agree to the terms<\/a><\/p>\n Spain said it would boycott next year\u2019s event if Israel took part. Ireland, Slovenia, Iceland and the Netherlands have made similar threats.<\/p>\n \t Other countries such as Belgium, Sweden and Finland have also been considering a boycott.<\/p>\n Sepp Schellhorn, a senior Austrian foreign ministry official, has slammed the boycott calls as \u201cdumb and pointless.\u201d Germany has also accused the countries behind the push of politicizing a cultural event, and suggested it might boycott the contest<\/a> if Israel is not allowed to participate.<\/p>\n Russia was excluded following its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, while Belarus had been excluded a year earlier after the contested re-election of President Alexander Lukashenko.<\/p>\n Romania, Moldova and Bulgaria have announced their intention to return in 2026, while Canada has expressed interest in joining.<\/p>\n Some 166 million viewers in 37 countries watched the 2025 competition, held in Basel, Switzerland.<\/p>\n Austria\u2019s JJ, whose real name is Johannes Pietsch, won the 2025 song contest with \u201cWasted Love,\u201d blending techno beats with operatic vocals.<\/p>\n The victory earned Austria the right to host the 70th edition of Eurovision.<\/p>\n \t Israel\u2019s entrant Yuval Raphael finished in second place. She survived Hamas\u2019s October 7, 2023, attack on the Nova music festival, where terrorists killed hundreds of partygoers, amid the larger attack that saw some 1,200 people killed and 251 taken hostage, triggering the Gaza war.<\/p>\n Israel has participated in the song competition since 1973, backing out of only three contests in the past 52 years \u2013 1980, 1984 and 1997 \u2013 when the dates conflicted with Memorial Day or Holocaust Remembrance Day. Israel has won the contest on four occasions \u2013 in 1978, 1979, 1998, and most recently in 2018, with Netta Barzilai\u2019s \u201cToy\u201d \u2014 and has hosted it three times.<\/p>\n The controversy over Israel\u2019s participation heavily overshadowed the 2023 and 2024 Eurovision contests, with most international media coverage of those competitions focusing on the efforts to bar Jerusalem by countries outraged by the war against Hamas in Gaza. The subsequent backlash and campaign to drum up support for Israel\u2019s contestants led them to ultimately soar in the public vote.<\/p>\n Amy Spiro contributed to this report.<\/p>\n
In this season of DocuNation, you can stream six outstanding Israeli documentaries with English subtitles and then join a live online discussion with the filmmakers. The selected films show Israel beyond the conflict: a place of storytellers and musicians, of dreamers, makers, and communities rooted in meaning and trust.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t When you watch DocuNation, you\u2019re also supporting Israeli creators at a time when it\u2019s increasingly difficult for them to share their work globally.<\/p>\n To learn more about DocuNation: The Heart of Israel, click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n \t\t\t
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\n\t\tKan CEO Golan Yochpaz (left) and Austrian public broadcaster Roland Weissmann (second from left) meet with President Isaac Herzog (second from right) in Jerusalem on November 7, 2025. (Courtesy)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/AFP__20250517__476894W__v1__HighRes__SwitzerlandMusicTelevisionAwardEurovision-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tAustrian singer Johannes Pietsch, known as JJ, celebrates with the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest trophy after winning the grand final at the St. Jakobshalle arena in Basel on May 18, 2025. (Fabrice COFFRINI \/ AFP)<\/p>\n
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