Eurovision organizers postpone the vote on Israel’s inclusion in the competition next year

Eurovision Song Contest organizers have postponed a vote on whether Israel should be allowed to participate in next year’s contest.

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) said that “recent developments in the Middle East” had prompted it to cancel a virtual meeting to vote on the matter, which had been scheduled to take place in November.

She said Israel’s participation would be discussed in an in-person meeting in December, but did not clarify whether the vote would go ahead.

Israel’s participation in Eurovision has faced opposition from some other participating countries due to the war in Gaza.

On Monday, Hamas released all twenty living Israeli hostages in exchange for the return of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners detained in Israeli prisons. This comes after the ceasefire entered into force on Friday.

The EBU said in a statement: “In light of the recent developments in the Middle East, the EBU Executive Board agreed (meeting on October 13) that there is a clear need to organize an open and personal discussion among its members on the issue of participation in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026.”

She added: “Accordingly, the Board of Directors agreed to put the issue on the agenda of its ordinary winter general assembly, which will be held next December, instead of organizing a special session in advance.”

The European Union announced last month It will invite 68 member states to express their views on whether Israel should participate in the General Assembly meeting next November.

Austria’s national broadcaster ORF, which will host the competition in 2026, said it welcomed the EBU’s decision.

She had previously urged countries not to boycott the competition next year in Vienna, where her Foreign Minister, Beth Meinel Reisinger, said that the Eurovision competition and the arts in general “are not the appropriate arenas for imposing sanctions.”

Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, Iceland and the Netherlands said they would consider boycotting next year’s competition If Israel participates.

Dutch broadcaster Avrotros said last month that it would not change its position if a ceasefire was reached in Gaza.

“If a ceasefire is reached in the near future or the conflict develops differently, this will not change our position for 2026. We will re-evaluate engagement in subsequent years, depending on the circumstances at that time,” she said in a statement.

The BBC asked the Israeli national broadcaster, Kan, for comment.

In September, she said she should be allowed to participate, saying she was “one of the long-standing, popular and successful participants in the competition.”

Israel finished second in the recent Eurovision Song Contest in May, with her work Yuval Raphael receiving the largest combined public vote.

However, the inclusion of the jury’s votes resulted in Austria being declared the overall winner.