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UK’s Eurovision Contestant Refuses to Boycott Song Contest Over Israel’s Involvement, Supports ‘Unifying Power of Music’
Olly Alexander in the music video for “Sweet Talker.” Photo: YouTube screenshot
Pop singer Olly Alexander, the United Kingdom’s representative in the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest, responded on Friday to an open letter signed by more than 450 members of the LGBTQ+ community asking him to boycott the international music competition because of Israel’s participation in the event.
Alexander — who joined others late last year in falsely accusing Israel of genocide and apartheid — said in a statement shared on social media that he wants to use his participation in the Eurovision contest to advocate for peace in the Middle East.
“I know some people will choose to boycott this year’s Eurovision and I understand and respect their decision,” he began by saying. “It is my current belief that removing myself from the contest wouldn’t bring us any closer to our shared goal. Instead, I’ve been speaking with some of the other EV contestants and we’ve decided that by taking part we can use our platform to come together and call for peace.”
“I hope and pray that our calls are answered and there is an end to the atrocities we are seeing taking place in Gaza,” he added. The singer also reiterated his support for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, and called for the return of all hostages taken by Hamas from Israel during the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks in the Jewish state, as well as “the safety and security of all civilians in Palestine and Israel.”
Queers for Palestine published an open letter on Thursday urging Alexander to pull out of Eurovision in solidarity with the Palestinians. “There can be no party with a state committing apartheid and genocide,” the group said. “At a time when accountability is so urgently needed, Israel’s inclusion in Eurovision would enable and cover up its war crimes and crimes against humanity.” The letter’s signatories included actors, writers, musicians, novelists, and playwrights.
Alexander also shared on Friday a joint statement from him and other Eurovision contestants this year who are choosing to remain in the competition, despite being against Israel’s actions during its ongoing defensive war against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip.
“We firmly believe in the unifying power of music, enabling people to transcend differences and foster meaningful conversations and connections,” they said. “We feel that it is our duty to create and uphold this space, with a strong hope that it will inspire greater compassion and empathy.” The joint statement was signed by Eurovision contestants Bambie Thug from Ireland, Gåte from Norway, iolanda from Portugal, Megara from San Marino, Nemo from Switzerland, SABA from Denmark, Silvester Belt from Lithuania, and Windows95Man from Finland.
Musicians in Iceland pushed to have Israel banned from the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest before the competition began because of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, but the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organizes the contest, rejected their demands. Eurovision Party London, the English capital city’s biggest Eurovision screening party, also announced last week that it was cancelling its screening event for this year’s Eurovision because of Israel’s involvement in the competition.
The finals for the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest will take place on May 11 in Malmö, Sweden. Israel’s contestant in the competition, Eden Golan, is competing with a song renamed Hurricane. The track’s original lyrics and song title, October Rain, was initially disqualified by the EBU for being too political since the original song referenced the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel.
An official in Israel has encouraged Israelis planning to attend this year’s Eurovision contest in Sweden to hide their Zionism or Israeli identity and not draw attention to themselves to avoid having security issues in Malto. The official described Malto as “an unfriendly area for Israelis.”
In last year’s Eurovision competition, contestant Noa Kirel from Israel came in third place.
The post UK’s Eurovision Contestant Refuses to Boycott Song Contest Over Israel’s Involvement, Supports ‘Unifying Power of Music’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Body of Mohammed Sinwar Recovered from Gaza, Taken to Israel
A screengrab shows according to the Israeli Army, Hamas Gaza chief Mohammed Sinwar, taken from a handout video, released Dec/ 17, 2023. Photo: Israeli Army/Handout via REUTERS
i24 News – During excavations carried out recently in the area of the European Hospital in Khan Yunis, several bodies were found – i24NEWS learned on Sunday that one belonged to late Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar, which is now being held in Israel.
On Saturday night, the Israel Defense Forces published documentation from the underground space located under the European Hospital in Khan Yunis. The tunnels include a command and control complex from which the fighting was conducted by senior Hamas commanders. During the scans, several additional bodies of terrorists were found.
About three weeks ago, Israel heavily shelled the hospital area, targeting the underground space below it, where the terrorist organization’s headquarters was located. In recent days, Israeli forces have been operating in the area, with an emphasis on underground tunnels, and have located the body. The IDF’s recovery of Sinwar’s body contradicts a previous report, according to which Hamas recovered his body from the tunnel under the European Hospital in Khan Yunis, and buried it in a tunnel in the Deir al-Balah area.
Sinwar was one of the senior and veteran figures in Hamas’ military wing, and took a significant part in the planning and execution of the murderous massacre on October 7, 2023, in which he served as head of the operations headquarters. After the assassination of military commander Mohammed Deif, Sinwar was appointed by his brother, late Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, to the position. He was an influential and central factor in the organization’s decision-making, promoting Hamas’s effort to rehabilitate after IDF operations.
Now, Israel possesses the bodies of both Sinwar brothers, with much of the Hamas leadership eliminated in the more than 600 days since the war began.
The post Body of Mohammed Sinwar Recovered from Gaza, Taken to Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hamas Militants Kill Gaza Civilians, Publicly Asserting Brutal Control
A drone view shows buildings lying in ruins, following a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, Jan. 19, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Al-Basos
i24 News – The Israeli army released footage from the Gaza Strip on Sunday showing a Palestinian brutally shot dead in public by what the military claims is a Hamas militant.
The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, General Ghassan Alian, released the footage via military channels. According to the official statement, the brutal execution took place last weekend in a Gaza City square, in front of witnesses. Israeli military authorities described the footage as “exceptional documentation” illustrating the Islamist movement’s methods against its own population.
General Alian addressed the residents of Gaza directly in a statement – “Hamas, terrorists, and criminals are killing you and do not care about your lives,” he said. “There is no difference between a dictator who kills in silence and a terrorist who massacres openly. Both are your enemies and the enemies of life.”
Alian described the act as “a desperate, further, and failed attempt to sow public fear in order to preserve Hamas’s rule, power, and governance, while cynically trampling on and exploiting the residents of Gaza for the survival of the Hamas terrorist regime and the preservation of its rule.”
Meanwhile, the IDF is intensifying its operations in key flashpoints in Gaza, particularly in Jabalia and Khan Yunis. Military forces continue to reach areas where they were not previously present.
The post Hamas Militants Kill Gaza Civilians, Publicly Asserting Brutal Control first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Two of Four Israeli Soldiers Killed in Gaza Building Collapse Identified
Tom Rothstein and the late Uri Jonathan Cohen / Photo: Israeli army spokesman
i24 News – Four Israeli soldiers were killed on Friday in the collapse of a building in Khan Younis during a military operation by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
The incident occurred during an offensive by the 98th Division targeting Hamas infrastructure in northern Khan Younis, near Bani Suheila.
The fallen soldiers were identified as Staff Sergeant Tom Rotstein, 23, from Ramat Gan; Staff Sergeant Uri Yehonatan Cohen, 20, from Neve Yarok; Reserve Staff Sergeant Chen Gross, 33; and Staff Sergeant Yoav Rovor, 19. All served in the elite Yahalom combat engineering unit.
According to IDF sources, the soldiers were part of a mission to secure a Hamas compound believed to contain underground tunnels. A powerful explosive device detonated during the operation, causing the structure to partially collapse and trap the soldiers inside.
Five additional soldiers were wounded—one seriously and four moderately. They were airlifted to hospitals, while search and recovery teams from the Home Front Command worked for hours to extract the bodies from the rubble.
This latest incident brings the total number of Israeli military fatalities to eight this week alone, raising the overall death toll to 424 since the start of the ground offensive in Gaza.
Earlier this week, three soldiers from the Rotem Battalion of the Givati Brigade were killed by an improvised explosive device in the northern Gaza Strip. Reserve Staff Sergeant Alon Perkas, 27, also died during separate combat in the Shejaiya neighborhood.
The IDF continues its operations in Gaza as military and political leaders navigate the high costs of an enduring conflict with Hamas.
The post Two of Four Israeli Soldiers Killed in Gaza Building Collapse Identified first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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