The Israeli representative Yuval Raphael brought her appearance at the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) in Basel confidently between boos and energetic applause. Bow calls and whistles from the audience were also heard from the start of her song “New Day Will Rise”. But the hall also filled the hall, Raphael smiled proudly at the end of the appearance. In addition to Israel flags, there was also at least one Palestine flag in the audience. The Israeli participation has caused criticism because of the Gaza War. Police brings water cannons in a position in position in the hall, the music party continued with other acts, the situation on the streets of Basel continued to heat up. Several hundred people went through the city center to demonstrate against Israel’s participation in the competition. The police opposed the rally to prevent people from moving towards the event area. The police formed barriers and at times threatened the use of a water cannon. The uniformeds began with personal checks in the demo, and the officials started out of 500 participants in the protest in the late evening. Some people ignited torches with colorful smoke. The police are prepared for all possible scenarios, said a spokesman. In view of the geopolitical situation and the participation of Israel, activists were also borne by English -language banners with messages such as “Freedom for your vision – united for Palestine” (Liberate Your Vision – United for Palestine) or “Do not give any stage to the genocide” (No Stage for Genocide). In speech choirs, the protesters called: “Shame on you” (shame on you), “Freedom for Palestine” (Free Palestine) and “boycotted Israel, boycotted Basel”. Israel’s representative Raphael was repeatedly criticized in Basel – because of her country’s offensive in the Gaza Strip. The war against the Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas in the Gaza Strip with tens of thousands of fatalities was triggered by a Hamas terrorist wave in October 2023. Yuval Raphael survived these attacks as a visitor to the Nova music festival, hidden for hours under corners.
