Swiss Eurovision winner Nemo to send trophy back in protest over Israel's participation

Swiss Eurovision winner Nemo on Thursday said they were handing back their trophy in the latest protest about Israel's continued participation in the contest over the war in Gaza.
Nemo, the non-binary singer who won in 2024 with "The Code," a drum-and-bass, opera, rap and rock song, said Israel's continued participation went against the contest's ideals of inclusion and dignity for all people.

The comments are the latest protest against the European Broadcasting Union, the Eurovision Organiser that has seen five countries pull out after it cleared Israel last week to take part in next year's event in Austria.

"Eurovision says it stands for unity, for inclusion, and dignity for all people. And these are the values that make this contest so meaningful for me," Nemo said in a post on Instagram.
"But Israel's continued participation, during what the U.N.'s Independent International Commission of Inquiry (on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel) has concluded to be a genocide, shows there's a clear conflict between those ideals and the decisions the EBU is making."

Iceland will not take part in the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest, the country's public broadcaster RUV said on Wednesday, joining Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland and Slovenia who have also pulled out, citing Israel's conduct in the war in Gaza.