A Eurovision Song Contest crew member was reportedly hit with paint after two people tried to disrupt Israel’s performance.
Last night (May 17), protesters attempted to rush on stage to disrupt Yuval Raphael’s Grand Final performance, organisers in Basel have said. Nobody was injured and a man and woman were escorted from the venue.
Per the Guardian, a spokesperson for Swiss broadcaster SRG SSR, who organised this year’s contest, said: “At the end of the Israeli performance, a man and a woman tried to get over a barrier on to the stage. They were stopped. One of the two agitators threw paint and a crew member was hit.
“The crew member is fine and nobody was injured. The man and the woman were taken out of the venue and handed over to the police.”
A spokesperson for the Israeli broadcaster KAN said the protesters “were blocked by security officials but Raphael was shaken and upset”. The singer was performing her song ‘New Day Will Rise’, which came second in the competition.
“At the same time, a big anti-Israel protest takes place in the centre of Basel. Israeli national security council issued a warning to Israeli civilians in the city to keep a low profile,” the KAN spokesperson added.
A spokesman for Basel police said: “The organiser handed the two people over to the police. The police checked the two people and then released them. It is now up to the organiser to decide whether to press charges.”
Youth Demand, an organisation calling for a trade Embargo on Israel, said its supporters David Curry, 22, from Manchester, and Meaghan Leon, 27, from London, had been arrested.
It came amid controversy surrounding this year’s event after over 70 former Eurovision contestants signed a letter calling to ban Israel from competing. The letter said that the inclusion of Israel in the 2024 edition led to it being “the most politicised, chaotic and unpleasant in the competition’s history”.
It also accused KAN of being “complicit in Israel’s genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza and the decades-long regime of apartheid and military occupation against the entire Palestinian people”, and claimed that the EBU was “normalising and whitewashing its crimes”.
Irish broadcaster RTÉ also asked Eurovision for a discussion over Israel’s involvement in the song contest.
In the lead-up to the competition, pro-Palestinian protests took place near a free concert in the centre of Basel against Israel’s inclusion in the contest. Some protesters reportedly clashed briefly with police in the centre of the city shortly before Raphael took to the stage for her final performance.
Hundreds of demonstrators, many wearing Palestinian keffiyeh scarves, carried signs stating: “No Music for Murder”, “Stop Genocide”, and “Singing while Gaza Burns”, per the Guardian.
During Raphael’s dress rehearsal on Thursday, six people with whistles and Palestinian flags obstructed her act and were subsequently ejected from the venue.
Raphael survived the October 7 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas gunmen at the Nova music festival, which killed hundreds of people. The singer hid under a pile of dead bodies for eight hours until she was rescued.
Austria took home the trophy this year with 436 votes for singer-songwriter JJ and his song ‘Wasted Love’.
This makes the country’s third win following previous victories in 1966 and 2014 – this makes Austria the country with the longest gap between years at 48.
Earlier this week, NME reported the bookers’ odds of Eurovision 2025 winners, with Austria’s JJ at 21 per cent in second place. Sweden’s KAJ were the bookers’ favourites, although the final results placed them at fourth place with 321 points.
UK’s Remember Monday, who finished in 19th place, spoke to NME about competing in this year’s song contest in Basel – and revealed that Queen‘s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ was a major influence on their “chaotic” power-pop song ‘What the Hell Just Happened?’
Estonia’s Eurovision 2025 entry Tommy Cash, who finished third with 356 points, also recently spoke to NME about the inspirations behind his controversial song ‘Espresso Macchiato’ and his hopes for winning.
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