Eurovision winner Nemo returns trophy in protest over Israel's participation in competition
The singer said they are grateful for the win but the "words and actions" of the EBU don't align. (Reuters: File)
In short:
Swiss singer Nemo says Israel's participation shows a clear conflict with the values of unity, inclusion and dignity Eurovision says it stands for.
Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Slovenia and Iceland have already withdrawn from the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest in protest.
What's next?
Eurovision 2026 is scheduled to be held in Vienna in May.
The 2024 winner of the Eurovision Song Contest says they will be returning their trophy to the European Broadcasting Union due to Israel being allowed to participate amid the war in Gaza.
In a statement posted on social media, Swiss singer Nemo said they felt the trophy "no longer belongs on my shelf".
"Eurovision says it stands for unity, inclusion, and dignity for all," they wrote.
"Those values made this contest meaningful to me.
"But Israel's continued participation, during what the UN's Independent International Commission of Inquiry has concluded to be a genocide, shows a clear conflict between those ideals and the decisions made by the EBU."
The singer said they would send the trophy back to EBU headquarters in Geneva.
Countries withdraw from contest
The decision to allow Israel to take part in next year's contest in Vienna has been controversial.
Last week, after meeting in Geneva, the EBU decided not to call a vote on Israel's participation, saying it had passed new rules aimed at discouraging governments from influencing the contest.
In response, Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Slovenia and Iceland withdrew from the contest.
Irish broadcaster RTE said it felt "Ireland's participation remains unconscionable given the appalling loss of lives in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there which continues to put the lives of so many civilians at risk".
Nemo said the contest was "repeatedly used to soften the image of a state accused of severe wrongdoing, all while the EBU insisted Eurovision is 'non-political'".
"And when entire countries withdraw over this contradiction, it should be clear that something is deeply wrong," they wrote.
Yesterday, prior to Nemo's decision to give back their trophy, the EBU released a statement on reactions to the decision to keep Israel in the contest.
"In the wake of the recent General Assembly discussion on the Eurovision Song Contest, several EBU Members have been criticised for the position they took in the debate," it wrote.
"While public service media is always open to criticism and critique, the EBU feels that some of the attacks on our Members — on both sides of the argument — have been completely inaccurate and ill-informed.
"The debate on the Eurovision Song Contest was respectful and articulate. Members expressing their opinions were reflecting their own and their audience's views on this difficult issue, not those of any political perspective or political party."
It has not yet commented on the return of the trophy.
Nemo made history with their win in 2024. (Reuters: File)
Nemo became the first openly non-binary person to win the contest with their song The Code.
This is not the first time they have criticised Israel's inclusion in the contest.
In May of this year, Nemo called for Israel to be excluded from the 2025 competition.
Israel's entrant, Yuval Raphael, was allowed to participate and came second for their song about surviving the October 7 attacks.
Israel's government has repeatedly defended its military campaign as a response to Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
Militants led by Hamas killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 people hostage.
The war has since killed more than 70,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, and lef the vast majority of the territory in ruins and much of its population homeless.
Many experts, including those commissioned by Amnesty International and a UN body, have said that Israel's offensive in Gaza amounts to genocide, a claim Israel has vigorously denied.