Sweden boosts Eurovision security ahead of anti-Israel protests
Eden Golan, the Israeli contestant, has been told not to leave her hotel room – Gil Cohen-Magen/AFP
Sweden is tightening security ahead of hosting the Eurovision Song Contest, with police given larger weapons and reinforcement officers brought in from Denmark and Norway.
It comes amid warnings of large demonstrations planned in Malmo, the host city, to coincide with the event. Protest are planned for May 9, when Israel will take part in the second semi-final, and May 11, the day of the final.
Protesters say they will challenge Israel’s participation in the contest amid the war in the Gaza Strip, in which thousands have died.
Eden Golan, the Israeli contestant, has been told by Israel’s Shin Bet security service not to leave her hotel room because of security concerns.
Petra Stenkula, the Malmo police chief, said the country was already “on a terror level of four out of five”, and that protests over Israel’s participation in the competition had already been held in Malmo.
She said there were no specific threats to the event, but the alert level was raised last August, following Quran-burning protests that angered the Muslim world.
Demonstrators gathered last month to protest against Israel’s participation in the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo – Johan Nilsson/AFP
Drones will be used for surveillance, and guests will have to pass through airport-style security controls when entering venues.
The European Broadcasting Union, the Geneva-based organisers, have also said they reserve the right to remove any Palestinian flags and pro-Palestinian symbols at the show.
It follows months of controversy over Israel’s entry. Eden Golon, the country’s contestant, had to modify the lyrics and title of her original song October Rain after it was deemed too political and said to reference the Oct 7 Hamas attack.
The European Broadcasting Union then permitted Ms Golon to compete with the renamed Hurricane.
As many as 100,000 visitors are expected to arrive in Malmo for the week-long festivities, while 200 million viewers worldwide are expected to tune in.
The south-western city is home to 360,000 people and is one of Sweden’s most diverse, but the Jewish community of around 1,200 people has said it is worried about being targeted by protests.
“There’s a certain feeling of apprehension, of tension,” Felix Krausz Sjogren, a guide at the synagogue in Malmo, told Reuters, about the planned protests.
On Thursday, Israel’s National Security Council issued an advisory warning against travel to Malmo, citing “well-founded concern that terrorist elements will exploit the protests and the anti-Israel mood to carry out attacks against Israelis attending Eurovision”.
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