Israel’s Yuval Raphael will appear at Eurovision as it returns this week with 26 acts to take to the stage and represent their country – but she is already anticipating a negative reaction before getting behind a mic
One Eurovision candidate has said she is ‘prepared for boos’ from the crowd after facing huge backlash for being in the singing contest.
Yuval Raphael is set to represent Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest, and will take to the stage to perform her song New Day Will Rise at the semi final on Thursday, May 15. This is despite several boycott threats and outcries of anger at the preparation stages for the competition. Israel’s participation in Eurovision is controversial due to its ongoing war on Gaza, in a conflict that Palestinian health authorities say has killed more than 52,800 people.
Israel’s military offensive was launched after Hamas attacked on 7 October 2023, killing around 1,200 people at the Nova festival and taking more than 250 hostages.
Raphael said she was one of the festival attendees. “It’s something I deal with every day,” she told the BBC.
“It feels like a personal win, just to be having this experience and representing my country and doing it with such pride.”
Recalling the incident, which took place a year and a half ago, Raphael said she was at her first outdoor rave when gunmen started opening fire. She and her friends took refuge in a concrete bomb shelter at the side of a road.
According to her, around 50 people were crammed in, forcing them to lie on top of each other.
The gunmen shot repeatedly into the mass of bodies in the shelter and then threw in hand grenades. She called her dad, who told her to be quiet and play dead.
Raphael was one of only 11 people in the shelter to survive. She recalled how she hid under a pile of dead bodies for eight hours until they were rescued.
In terms of the backlash, Raphael said she was prepared to be booed on stage. “I think I’m expecting it,” she admitted. “But we are here to sing and I’m going to sing my heart out for everyone.”
Last week, more than 70 former Eurovision contestants signed a letter calling on the organisers to ban Israel from the competition.
However, the rules of the European Broadcasting Union means no political statements can be made on stage or around. The organisation, which rule over Eurovision, have not loosened these rules.
The singer won’t describe what happened to her at Nova during the run-up to the competition. But, she did previously gave testimony about her experience to the United Nations.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
