GENEVA — Organizers of the Eurovision Tune Contest stated Thursday they reserve the proper to take away any Palestinian flags and pro-Palestinian symbols on the present subsequent week in Sweden.
The announcement got here amid heightened tensions surrounding Israel’s participation within the annual music competitors over its navy marketing campaign towards Hamas in Gaza, now in its seventh month. Professional-Palestinian teams are anticipated to stage giant protests in Malmo to boost consciousness of their trigger.
Michelle Roverelli, the top of communications for the European Broadcasting Union that runs the present annually, stated ticket patrons are solely allowed to carry and show flags that symbolize international locations that participate within the occasion, in addition to the rainbow-colored flag.
The Geneva-based EBU reserves the proper “to take away another flags or symbols, clothes, objects and banners getting used for the seemingly goal of instrumentalizing the TV exhibits,” she instructed The Related Press in a textual content message.
Swedish information company TT reported that the anybody who tries to carry a Palestinian flag or an indication with a political message shall be stopped on the entrance by guards.
Martin Österdahl, the competition’s Govt Supervisor instructed TT that “these guidelines are the identical as final yr. There isn’t a change.”
Nationwide flags are a standard sight through the contest as followers cheer on their nation’s acts and people they help.
The glitzy gala, which pulls tons of of tens of millions of viewers annually, is internet hosting the occasion from Might 7-11 in Malmo in southern Sweden, following final yr’s victory by Loreen for its efficiency of “Tattoo” final yr.
Winners earn the proper for his or her nation to host the next yr’s occasion: Sweden is ready to host for a record-equalling seventh time.
Swedish police have warned that safety shall be tight, citing a risk of terrorism within the rich Nordic nation.
Professional-Palestinian activists who need Israel — a former winner — out of the Eurovision Tune Contest have introduced giant rallies in downtown Malmo, a number of kilometers (miles) from the Malmo Area contest venue.
Final month Swedish police stated they’d acquired an software for an indication in Malmo to burn a duplicate of the Quran earlier than the competition. Sweden raised its terror risk degree final yr following a sequence of burnings of the Quran that triggered protests within the Muslim world.
In current weeks, spillover response around the globe to the almost 7-month conflict between Israel and Hamas has fanned giant protests on U.S. college campuses and past.
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Jan M. Olsen in Copenhagen, Denmark, contributed to this report.