This Saturday, May 11, the Malmö Arena in Malmö (Sweden) witnessed one of the most tense Eurovision finals in history. The 2024 edition has been one of the most controversial editions in recent years, since Israel’s participation was not very welcome among the rest of the delegations due to its conflict with Palestine. Throughout the week, several artists and delegations showed their rejection of the Middle Eastern country, and these gestures also found their way into yesterday’s grand final.
The truth is that Saturday’s day began very tense after the expulsion of the candidate from the Netherlands, Joost Klein, who was disqualified after being involved in “an incident” with a member of the production team. On the other hand, Bambie Thug, the representative of Ireland, decided to be absent from the dress rehearsal to inform the European Broadcasting Union of a complaint about the pejorative comments made about her by the Israeli broadcasting corporation (KAN).
During the official rehearsal of the flag parade, three delegations did not come out: Ireland, Greece and Switzerland – something that ultimately did not happen in the grand final. Nor did France agree with everything that happened, especially with Israel’s participation. During the rehearsal, Slimane, his representative, interrupted his performance to speak out and ask for peace.
Likewise, Alessandra Mele, who was supposed to be the spokesperson for the votes of the Norwegian jury, announced hours before the start of the gala that she would not finally participate in the contest and was positioning herself against the participation of Israel. Loreen, winner of the last edition, assured that she would not come out to present the trophy if the country won the contest.
But gestures of rejection of Israel or displays of support for Palestine did appear subliminally during the grand final. Precisely, Bambie Thug, representative of Ireland, shouted a few words at the end of her performance that did not go unnoticed. “Love will always triumph hate,” she said.
On the other hand, the Irish delegation managed to sneak in one more symbol to show its support for the Palestinian people. It was the Internet users who realized this. When the camera focused on them in the green room, some viewers noticed a kind of stuffed animal next to Bambie Thug. It was one shaped like a watermelon, the fruit that has been used as a pro-Palestine symbol because it has the same colors as the flag. A new gesture that shows support for the Palestinian people.
Another of the delegations that was critical of Israel was that of Portugal. There were several gestures that Iolanda, her representative, had with the Palestinian people. “Peace will prevail,” the Portuguese woman shouted at the end of her performance. The Portuguese artist also wore nails decorated with Palestinian colors and motifs. And it wasn’t the only wink. For the flag parade, she chose a black dress from Trashy Clothing, a Palestinian brand. On the other hand, during the jury votes, Mimicat, the spokesperson for Portugal, made a plea for peace. “We want everyone to seek love and peace,” she said during her speech.
