Officials of the Eurovision music festival confirmed that Israel would compete in next year's installment in Malmo, Sweden despite calls for them to be banned for its war against Hamas.
Artists from Iceland have called for the boycott of the competition unless Israel is prevented from taking part due to its invasion of Gaza.
The Irish public broadcaster RTE also drafted a petition with similar demands, which was signed by over 500 people as of writing.
However, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) told Sky News that Israel would participate in Eurovision 2024.
"The Eurovision Song Contest is a competition for public service broadcasters from across Europe and the Middle East," EBU said in a statement. "It is a competition for broadcasters - not governments - and the Israeli public broadcaster has participated in the contest for 50 years."
The EBU added that its organization is a member-led one, and stressed that its executive board agreed that Israeli broadcaster KAN met "all the competition rules and can participate in the contest next year."
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EBU: Eurovision is 'Non-Political'
In addition, the EBU said it was aligned with sporting unions and federations, which have taken a similar stance towards Israel, saying it was not up to the organization to make comparisons between war and conflict, which was affected by Russia's exclusion from the contest in 2022.
"The Eurovision Song Contest remains a non-political event that unites audiences worldwide through music," it added.
Israel, represented by former Israel Defense Forces soldier Noa Kirel, placed fourth in the 2023 competition in Liverpool.
Both Iceland and Israel have confirmed their participation for next year's contest, but have not selected entries.
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