Iceland begins campaign to boycott Eurovision in Israel

By Atila Altuntas

STOCKHOLM (AA) - A petition has begun in Iceland to boycott the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest in Israel over human rights violations committed by Israeli forces against Palestinian people.

More than 22,000 people have so far signed the petition, which was initiated by developer Arni Steingrimur Sigurosson who urged the country's national broadcaster RUV to boycott the song contest, according to Iceland's state television SVT on Thursday; pop star Paul Oskar is among those who have signed the petition.

The petition began in the wake of Israeli forces in Gaza martyring more than 60 unarmed Palestinian protesters on Monday.

Earlier, RUV said 18,000 signatures on the petition accounts for 4.8 percent of Iceland's population, adding it could influence the network's decision on Eurovision.

Swedish Aftonbladet daily said Iceland's boycott campaign against the 64th Eurovision Song Contest could spread to other countries rapidly and the contest could be moved to another country instead of Israel or result in many countries not participating in Eurovision.

Dublin Mayor also has urged the Irish government to expel the Israeli ambassador in the wake of Israeli killings of dozens of unarmed Palestinian protesters, local media reported Thursday.

Monday’s protests in Gaza coincided with Israel’s 70th anniversary -- an event Palestinians refer to as Nakba or the Catastrophe -- and the relocation of the U.S. Embassy to Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Since the mass Gaza rallies began on March 30, more than 100 Palestinian protesters have been martyred by Israeli army gunfire.

Last week, the Israeli government claimed the ongoing protests constitute a “state of war” in which international humanitarian law does not apply.