A letter from the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) addressed to the head of the Spanish delegation, Ana María Bordas, reminded RTVE that Eurovision rules forbid political statements that could compromise the contest’s neutrality. Spanish public television confirmed the existence of the letter without disclosing further details.
The document emphasizes that citing casualty figures has no place in an apolitical entertainment program. The letter follows a controversial transmission during the second semifinal, where RTVE presenters Tony Aguilar and Julia Varela highlighted the network’s formal request to the festival’s organizers to debate Israel’s continued participation amidst its ongoing offensive in Palestine.
The presenters mentioned “over 50,000” Palestinian casualties—now exceeding 53,000, including more than 15,000 children—according to figures from the United Nations, since the offensive began in October 2023. This prompted a formal complaint to the EBU from the Israeli public broadcaster KAN, as reported by Ynet.
Last year, Ernest Urtasun, spokesperson for Sumar and Spanish Minister of Culture, requested the RTVE management appear in congress to ensure the Spanish public broadcaster would not “participate in the whitewashing of genocide,” referring to Israeli actions.
Israel’s involvement in the contest has been opposed by past Eurovision participants and the Spanish public broadcaster. Over 70 musicians, including Salvador Sobral, António Calvário, Fernando Tordo, Lena D’Água, and Paulo de Carvalho, appealed to the EBU to exclude Israel. In an open letter, signatories describe Israeli broadcaster KAN as “complicit in the genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.”
The letter, released by NGO Artists For Palestine and the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement, was signed by various artists across disciplines and countries. RTVE has called for “a debate” regarding KAN’s participation in Eurovision, expressing its position to the EBU.
RTVE’s plea followed Finnish petitions in late March urging Finland’s public broadcaster Yle to persuade the EBU to exclude Israel from the 2025 edition due to the conflict in Gaza. Today’s final can be watched live in Portugal on RTP1, RTP International, and RTP Play from 20:00.
Gazan authorities today raised the death toll to nearly 53,300 since the Israeli military offensive began following attacks by Hamas and other Palestinian groups on October 7, 2023, which resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and nearly 250 kidnappings, according to Israeli official figures.
