Ireland confirms it will pull out of Eurovision 2026 if Israel takes part in song contest

The statement reads: "At the General Assembly of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) in July, a number of EBU members raised concerns about the participation of Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest.

"RTÉ wishes to thank the EBU for the extensive consultation process that was initiated on foot of that meeting, and the extension of the option to withdraw from participation without penalty to December.

"It is RTÉ’s position that Ireland will not take part in the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest if the participation of Israel goes ahead, and the final decision regarding Ireland’s participation will be made once the EBU’s decision is made.

"RTÉ feels that Ireland’s participation would be unconscionable given the ongoing and appalling loss of lives in Gaza. RTÉ is also deeply concerned by the targeted killing of journalists in Gaza, and the denial of access to international journalists to the territory, and the plight of the remaining hostages."

Ireland is the second country to suggest pulling out of the competition, with Slovenia also issuing a similar statement.

In response to Slovenia's stance, executive supervisor of the Eurovision Song Contest Martin Green said: "We understand the concerns and deeply held views around the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. We are still consulting with all EBU Members to gather views on how we manage participation and geopolitical tensions around the Eurovision Song Contest.

"Broadcasters have until mid-December to confirm if they wish to take part in next year’s event in Vienna. It is up to each Member to decide if they want to take part in the Contest and we would respect any decision broadcasters make."

This year saw Israel come in second place, with entry Yuval Raphael scoring 357 points, just beating Estonia's Tommy Cash by one point.

Eurovision has faced criticism over its decision to allow Israel to compete in light of the current war in Gaza and the Middle East, with fans and members of the music industry previously calling for a boycott of the ceremony.

Protests were staged across the city of Malmö in host country Sweden last year, while this year a number of former Eurovision entrants signed a joint letter calling on the EBU to ban Israel’s public broadcaster KAN.

In a statement issued last year, Noel Curran – director general of the EBU – said in response to the protests: "We understand the concerns and deeply held views around the current conflict in the Middle East. We can’t fail to be moved by the profound suffering of all those caught up in this terrible war.

"However, the Eurovision Song Contest is a non-political music event and a competition between public service broadcasters who are members of the EBU. It is not a contest between governments.

"As a member-led organisation, our governing bodies – the Eurovision Song Contest Reference Group and the Executive Board – did review the participants list for the 2024 Contest and agreed that the Israeli public broadcaster KAN met all the competition rules for this year and can participate as it has for the past 50 years."