Iceland 2019:Israeli consul meets RUV due to complaint about withdrawal

Iceland 2019:Israeli consul meets RUV due to complaint about withdrawal

In the last few weeks, a written report has been drawn up that, due to the events in Gaza, Iceland may not participate in the next Eurovision contest. That is why a consul from Israel visited the country’s national broadcaster, RUV.

Raphael Schutz, the Israeli consul, met representatives of RUV as well as the Icelandic delegate responsible for Eurovision. According to sources, Raphael Schutz is worried about the growing pressure from RUV because of its desire to withdraw from the next Eurovision contest in Israel.

Icelandic delegation’s chief Felix Bergsson stated:

“We just wanted to show him our kindness and we accepted the meeting with him, since he asked it. He just wanted to hear where we are in general. Mostly we heard what he had to say”.

The formal decision to withdraw or participate in Iceland in the competition has not yet been taken. The national broadcaster will respond after discussing this issue with other Scandinavian countries. It is important to learn that the written report has collected over 25000 signatures.

The complaint stated:

“Following the violation of Israel’s human rights to the Palestinian nation, it is immoral to participate in such a glamorous competition as Eurovision under the shadow of Israeli violence against its neighbors”.

It is worth noting that this year Iceland was represented by Ari Ólafsson and “Our Choice”. Unfortunately, the country did not qualify to the big final of the contest.

Fotis Kourouvanis

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