Security measures have been put in place (Picture: AFP)
Ahead of Eurovision’s big kickoff in Sweden, worries of protests and violence in response to Israel’s permission to compete have been raised.
Malmö, Sweden will host the popular song contest this year – but Eurovision has already faced backlash for allowing Israel to compete, due to the ongoing war against Palestine.
Swedish authorities have been preparing security for months as the arena is also set to be a ‘priority target’ for Islamic terrorist groups.
Israel’s entry, Golan, told public broadcaster Kan: ‘This year more than ever we have an important job to show the world that Israel is here and we’re not going anywhere.
‘I feel pride and a sense of responsibility and I want to thank everyone for the months of love, backing and support, which remind me every day who I am representing.’
Malmö, however, has a large Palestinian population and has been the centre of passionate protests against Israel – further fuelling worries of an altercation ahead of Eurovision.
What are local authorities doing to prepare?
Malmo has already seen mass protests (Picture: Reuters)
Police in Sweden have been preparing for months to host the enormous event.
Drone-mounted cameras will be used to monitor the Malmö region and arena beginning on May 4 and ending on May 13.
A police spokesperson told Metro.co.uk: ‘We´ve been planning our operation for about six months, and even though we never go in to any specific details regarding our operations I can say that there will be a lot of police officers on duty during Eurovision week and we’re very confident we can handle the large amount of people visiting Malmö.’
Along with Swedish officers, Nordic and Danish police colleagues will also assist with the large crowds expected for Eurovision.
The spokesperson added: ‘We prepare for every conceivable scenario during our planning work. We expect a lot of manifestations and voicing of opinions during Eurovision week, but nothing points to the manifestations being violent.’
Attendees will go through airport-style security (Picture: Reuters)
In order to protest, a permit is required – the police say they’ve received a few applications for these permits, but none have yet been approved.
‘It is extremely uncommon for a permit application of this type to be rejected as the right to hold manifestations is highly protected in the Swedish constitution. Before approval, though, there will be dialogue with the applicants as we need to make sure that we can guarantee safety during the manifestations.’
Sweden’s recent admission to NATO has also sparked concerns about protests becoming violent, regarding tensions with Russia.
These worries have seen roughly 10% of the 600 volunteers for Eurovision drop out due to ‘personal reasons’ and ‘security concerns’.
Why are people protesting?
Paulina lives in Malmo and said she will be protesting (Picture: Contributed)
Paulina, 35, was born in Malmo but also grew up in Chile. She’s a dancer, is planning to do flash mobs with traditional Palestinian dances to raise awareness about the war.
She also plans to partake in protests ahead of Eurovision, telling Metro.co.uk: ‘I want to protest because I find it horrible, what’s happening.
‘When I’m at work and people are handling things like nothing is happening, it’s a difficult feeling.
‘When I come to the demonstrations, at least I’m surrounded by people that care. We’ve also been writing to artists that are in the event for Eurovision to encourage them to boycott it.
‘I want to show the world where Malmo stands. We don’t want to welcome the representatives of Israel – it’s not normal, it’s not okay.’
Security fears and measures
Sniffer dogs and drone cameras will also be equipped (Picture: Reuters)
Risks mentioned ahead of Eurovision include violent protests, heightened terror threats and increased tensions with Russia after Sweden’s NATO membership was approved.
In 2023, Sweden raised its terror level threat to ‘high’ for the first time since 2016 after protests which burned the Quran triggered protests in the Muslim world.
Swedish police mentioned last month that an application to stage a demonstration to burn the Quran before Eurovision had been handed in, but did not say whether or not it would be approved.
Following the increase of Sweden’s terror level in August 2023 to level four out of five, other concerns have been raised regarding the potential for a terror attack.
March’s attack on Crocus Concert Hall has rung alarm bells (Picture: AP)
An ISIS-related attack on Crocus Concert Hall in Moscow this March put many European countries on high alert.
In early April, ISIS issued a threat for the Champions League match held in London.
Similar security measures will be taken for attendees, who are likely to pass through an airport security style check when entering venues around the city.
Per-Erik Ebbestahl, Malmo’s security director, said: ‘There’s a high threat level combined with a lot of people.
Have there been previous tensions around Eurovision?
Israel’s contestant, Eden Golan, has come under fire (Picture: AFP)
Multiple times, in fact.
In 2009, tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan flared up when many people who voted for the Armenian song entry were questioned by Azerbaijani police.
In 2015, Armenia’s song entry into the contest had to change its name because of political connotations attached to it, in relation to Azerbaijan.
Georgia also previously withdrew from the contest in 2009, when in the aftermath of the Russo-Georgian War, they competed with a song called ‘We Don’t Wanna Put In’.
The contest refused to allow the entry as they appeared to criticise Putin – Georgia refused to change them, and subsequently withdrew.
Russia and Ukraine has also presented challenges to the ‘apolitical’ Eurovision song contest.
In 2016, Ukraine won the contest with the song ‘1944’ which referenced the deportation of Crimean Tatars – despite Russia campaigning against the song.
After Russia’s invasion into Ukraine in 2022, other participating countries voted to ban Russia from the contest.
Now, the hot topic surrounding this year’s competition is Israel’s participation – the country has taken part in the contest since 1973.
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