Europe Asia News

Austrian public broadcaster ORF, which will host the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest, confirmed it will not ban the Palestinian flag or mute any boos directed at Israel’s performance. “Our duty is to show events as they are.”

Eurovision organizers announced that a total of 35 countries will take part in the world’s largest live-broadcast music event in May.

This marks the lowest number of participants since 2003, as five national broadcasters – Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Iceland – withdrew from the contest due to Israel’s continued participation.

These countries argue that participation would be “unconscionable,” given civilian casualties in Gaza following Israel’s response to Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack.

Program producer Michael Kroen stated that all official flags are permitted.

Kroen said, “We will allow all official flags that exist in the world, provided they comply with the law and certain conditions (size, security risks, etc.),” adding, “We will not soften anything or shy away from showing what is happening, because our duty is to present events as they are.”

ORF programming director Stefanie Groiss-Horowitz also confirmed that crowd boos will not be censored or suppressed, saying, “We will never use artificial applause.”