Courage of the Israeli singer at heart of Eurovision’s Gaza storm
IT is a statement of the utmost courage and defiance from a young singer with the eyes of the world on her. After braving protests ahead of tonight’s Eurovision Song Contest – and booing during rehearsals – Israeli contestant Eden Golan says: ‘I’m not scared. In fact, I’ve been very happy.’
In an exclusive interview with the Mail, the 20-year-old contestant said: ‘[The semi-final] gave me a huge boost of energy and I’m totally focused.’
Sweden’s terror threat is at four on a fivepoint scale as it prepares to host the final against a backdrop of demonstrations against Israel’s participation.
Golan has become a lightning rod for protest following the invasion of Gaza in response to the Hamas atrocities of October 7, when more than 1,100 Israelis died and 252 were taken hostage.
Since then, Israeli attacks on the coastal territory have resulted in more than 34,000 deaths, according to the Hamas-controlled health ministry.
An estimated 12,000 people turned out to protest against Golan’s presence in Malmo, where the show is taking place, on Thursclose day and another demonstration was planned for today.
Meanwhile, venues across Britain are cancelling viewing parties after pro-Palestine protest groups instructed their followers to hound pubs showing the contest’s final. Some have even been forced to their doors as they fear for their staff’s safety.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak yesterday described the protests as ‘outrageous’ and calls for a boycott ‘wrong’.
The controversy over Israel’s entry has even dragged in some of Golan’s fellow competitors. The Netherlands’ Eurovision entry Joost Klein is under investigation by organisers the European Broadcasting Union after an incident at a press conference on Thursday evening.
Amid rumours that terrorists are planning to bomb the Malmo Arena where the final will be staged, Golan was asked by a Polish radio station whether she thought she was causing a security risk for other participants by attending the event.
When the moderator of the conference told Golan she did not have to answer the question if she did not want to, Klein shouted out: ‘Why not?’
He missed the show’s penultimate dress rehearsal yesterday, where he had been due to perform in fifth place ahead of Golan, and it is not clear if he will perform in tonight’s final.
In another incident, last year’s
Finnish entrant Kaarija apologised for dancing with Golan after a video of them together attracted thousands of negative comments on social media.
‘I would like to clarify and emphasise that the video is not a political statement or an endorsement of any kind,’ he wrote in a statement on Instagram.
Greek Eurovision entry Marina Satti also attracted criticism for pretending to be asleep as Golan spoke at a press conference.
And the UK’s representative, Olly Alexander, was among nine
Eurovision artists who have signed a letter calling for a Gaza ceasefire.
Meanwhile, Denmark, Finland, Norway and even host country Sweden have repeatedly called for Israel to be banned from the contest altogether. And in Belgium, two ministers demanded that the Jewish state be treated the same as Russia, which has been barred since 2022 following its invasion of Ukraine.
Golan herself has endured a barrage of death threats and Israel’s national security agency, Shin Bet, has ordered her to leave her hotel room only to perform.
One can understand why. The streets of Malmo are dotted with vile posters of Golan that depict her with devil horns and encircled by haunting images of dead Palestinian babies, under the words: ‘Boycott Eurovision’ and ‘Israhell!’
Last week in my interview with Golan, published in the Mail on Sunday, she said she wouldn’t ‘let anything break me’, adding: ‘I wouldn’t say I’m worried. I’m prepared.’ There were some boos from the audience during her performance in the semi-final but she was unfazed.
‘Of course it was not pleasant,’ she says. ‘But I didn’t let it get to me. I wanted it to be my best performance.’
Her family – father Eddie, 56, mother Olga, 50, and brother Sean, 17 – have stayed at home in Tel Aviv as their presence would have created another headache for the already overstretched police force.
‘They’re worried,’ she admits. ‘But they’re confident in my security and very proud of me.’
The city was relatively calm yesterday. But Golan’s security team was taking no chances. She was driven to the Malmo Arena in a convoy of a dozen cars escorted by police outriders.
The venue is surrounded by metal barricades and large concrete blocks, with armed police guarding the venue and visitors required to pass through metal detectors.
Given the disruption, it’s no surprise to find that Malmo’s res
‘I won’t let anything break me, I’m prepared’ ‘This year’s contest is too political’
idents have mixed views about Israel’s participation.
Ana, 44, who declines to give her last name, believes Israel should have been barred from the competition.
‘I think what Israel is doing [in Gaza] is genocide. It was wrong of them to participate this year. I know the competition is about unity but Russia was excluded in 2022, so the same thing should have happened to Israel.’
Lifelong Eurovision fan David Lever, 58, from Brighton, arrived in Malmo on Monday. He and a friend, wearing matching silver sequined jackets, have tickets for the final.
To him, the song contest is all about ‘diversity and an insight into European music’.
He sympathises with Golan. ‘She’s only 20,’ he tells me. ‘She’s at the beginning of her career. [Hurricane] is a good song and it should be rewarded on the merits of that.’
It’s a sentiment shared by friends Mike Kleinschmidt and Leif Hanson, from Hamburg in Germany.
‘Usually the atmosphere at the final is vivid and one of celebration. But this year it’s too political. People have the right to demonstrate and make their opinions heard, as long as they do so safely,’ says Mike.
Many reckon that the controversy surrounding Golan means she has little chance of winning but, while Baby Lasagna, from Croatia, remains the favourite, Israel has jumped to second place, gaining 17 percentage points in the past 24 hours.
‘I’m so excited about the final,’ Golan says. ‘This has been my mission, and something I’ve been practising for my whole life – and I can’t wait.’