RTÉ’s major studios were the scene of protests, but the national broadcaster stuck by its decision to compete in this year’s Eurovision, reports Breaking News.
Dozens of protesters demonstrated against Israel’s participation in this year’s song contest on Thursday outside the RTÉ campus in Dublin.
A theatrical “die-in” was held during the event, when a number of demonstrators played dead on the ground in remembrance of the medical professionals who have been slain in Israel’s military operation. Human rights activists, artists, and singers were also present, reports Breaking News.
The demonstrators, who were brought together by the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC), said that Eurovision was “actively ‘artwashing’ Israel’s war crimes.”
Award-winning actor Stephen Rea recited the poem “If I Should Die” by Refaat Alareer, with participation from jazz vocalist Honour Heffernan and a number of other artists.
Zoe Lawlor said: “Israel’s President Yitzhak Herzog has stated ‘it’s important for Israel to appear in Eurovision’. We say the opposite. It’s vital to exclude the genocidal apartheid state of Israel from this global cultural platform,” reports Breaking News.
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