"When human rights are at stake, silence is no alternative. Peace and justice for Palestine" was written on the text box when the Spanish public service channel La 1 initiated the Eurovision broadcast.
When the program was broadcast, and Israel's music contribution was played, the program hosts did not mention the matter, writes the newspaper El País.
The EBU has previously threatened Spain's public service company with fines if the broadcasts contain references to the war in Gaza. During the semifinal, commentators had discussed Israel's participation, and mentioned that over 50,000 people, including at least 15,000 children, had been killed in Gaza.
Israel's participation in the music competition has been criticized from several quarters. The EBU has been accused of hypocrisy for allowing Israel to remain, after previously excluding Russia in 2022 due to Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
In Basel, Switzerland, where the final took place, the police used tear gas and rubber bullets on Saturday evening.
Two people also attempted to storm the stage when Israeli Yuval Raphael, who survived Hamas' terror attack on an Israeli music festival on October 7, 2023, performed with his country's bid.
