Ireland’s Eurovision Song Contest representative Bambie Thug has urged contest organizers to address comments made on Israeli television ahead of her semi-final performance on Tuesday.
Arguing that the comments breached Eurovision rules, Bambie Thug said Israel should no longer be able to participate in the competition.
On Tuesday, a commentator on Kan, Israel’s public broadcaster, warned his viewers with children that Bambie Thug’s performance of his song “Doomsday Blue” would be “the scariest” of the night. He also noted that Bambie Thug liked to “talk negatively about Israel.”
“There will be a lot of spells, black magic and dark clothing, satanic symbols and voodoo dolls, as if we were in Cats Square in Jerusalem in the mid-90s,” the commentator said, referring to a well-known public square in Jerusalem that was central to the city ??nightlife in the 1990s and synonymous with gothic culture.
The Eurovision Song Contest is organized by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), an alliance of public service broadcasters.
In a statement, the EBU said: “We have spoken to KAN, the Israeli broadcaster, about this matter and have reiterated the importance of all commentators respecting all artists participating in the contest and complying with the rules and regulations of the event. ”.
Bambie Thug responded to the comments, and, far from giving up, he made it clear that he will go on stage with more anger to do even better.
“I am angry at the other countries that break the EBU rules and are still allowed to participate,” she said. “It’s definitely like a war drum beating in my heart that will push the performance even further than I’ve ever done before,” she concluded.
