UEA students to boycott Israel's Eurovision entry in Norwich

The Students' Union (SU) at the University of East Anglia has announced they will not be showing the Israel entry as part of their planned festivities this weekend.

An SU statement explained: "We believe that Eurovision has the power to connect our diverse community of students at the UEA.

The UEA SU posted the statement to their Instagram account on Tuesday (Image: UEA SU on Instagram)

"However, in light of the actions of the Israeli government and the controversy surrounding Israel's performance at this year's Eurovision, we have decided that we will not be airing Israel's Eurovision act during our Eurovision party.

"We feel that promoting Israel's entry would be wrong given the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people.

"We hope this decision allows everyone to enjoy the festivities without causing further divide."

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) decided earlier this year that Israel would still be allowed to enter the competition despite calls to block the country amid the war in Gaza.

Charlotte Salomon, Conservative candidate for Norwich North (Image: Charlotte Salomon)

Charlotte Salomon, who is Jewish and lived in Israel for five years, is now the Conservative candidate for Norwich North and said: "This is a shame, Eurovision is something that brings us all together - it's not political.

"These are very difficult international times and it's a shame to censor something like this.

"This is a really scary and unnerving time for both Jews and Israelis - and those students will feel alienated by this. It's pretty sad.

"I think a students' union should be inclusive of all students.

"I really hope they reconsider. If we censor things that bring us together, I don't know where we go from there."

David Thomas is the Conservative candidate for Norwich South (Image: Norwich Conservatives)

Repeated attempts to speak with the UEA SU about its stance proved unsuccessful.

David Thomas, Conservative parliamentary candidate for Norwich South, is also unimpressed.

"Eurovision is an apolitical competition," said the former Jane Austen College headteacher.

"It is an opportunity for people to hear others sing and vote for their favourite act.

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"Israel has met all of the entry criteria for the competition and the EBU are the best judges of the situation.

"I strongly doubt that Eurovision will be upset about people turning off part of the competition."

The UEA SU is an elected body voted to lead the students at the university (Image: Newsquest)

This is not the first time the UEA's SU has made headlines for its boycotts. 

In 2015, sombreros were banned from a freshers' event because they didn't meet the Union's advertising policy on 'equal opportunities' and 'discriminatory' grounds.

The student council voted to ban beef from campus in 2019, a decision that it U-turned on within a month after a backlash from farmers.

Israel entrant Noa Kirel during the 2023 opening of the grand final for the Eurovision Song Contest final at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool (Image: PA)

The Eurovision divide

At the end of January, the Eurovision Song Contest issued a statement about the EBU's decision to allow Israel to compete.

A spokesman said: "The Eurovision Song Contest is a non-political music event and a competition between public service broadcasters who are members of the EBU. It is not a contest between governments.

"As a member-led organization, our governing bodies – the Eurovision Song Contest Reference Group and the Executive Board – agreed that the Israeli public broadcaster KAN met all the competition rules for this year and can participate."

Eden Golan is set to perform 'Hurricane' at the semi-finals on Thursday (Image: Eurovision Song Contest)

Israel's entry Eden Golan, whose song Hurricane was inspired by the country's trauma in the aftermath of the October 7 Hamas terrorist attack, has faced death threats.

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She told The Jewish Chronicle that she is being looked after by a "great security team" that has been taking care of her and, despite the calls to boycott the show, said that she was "so happy" and saw it as a "crazy honour".

Israel's semi-final is tonight in Malmo, Sweden, with the final broadcast live on Saturday.

With security high amid planned protests, there was controversy after the first semi-final as Swedish performer Eric Saade - whose father is Palestinian - wore a keffiyeh on his wrist, which is seen as being pro-Palestinian.

The EBU said: “We regret that Eric Saade chose to compromise the non-political nature of the event."