Ireland will not take part in next year’s Eurovision Song Contest if Israel participates, the Irish state broadcaster RTÉ said on Thursday, saying that it would be “unconscionable” amid the war in Gaza.

In a statement made available online, the Irish broadcaster said it was “RTÉ’s position that Ireland will not take part in the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest if the participation of Israel goes ahead.”

A final decision would be taken when the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) makes a ruling on the matter, following concerns raised by several members at a general assembly in July, it said.

The brief statement explained that “RTÉ feels that Ireland’s participation would be unconscionable given the ongoing and appalling loss of lives in Gaza.”

“RTÉ is also deeply concerned by the targeted killing of journalists in Gaza, and the denial of access to international journalists to the territory, and the plight of the remaining hostages,” it added.

Israel has been fighting Hamas in Gaza since the October 7, 2023, massacre led by the terror group that killed some 1,200 people and saw another 251 hostages taken to Gaza. It denies deliberately targeting journalists but has said it killed several active terrorists who were using journalism as a cover.

Israel also strongly denies accusations of genocide, saying that it makes efforts to mitigate harm to civilians, but that Hamas makes widespread use of civilian infrastructure.

Ireland has won Eurovision seven times — more times than any other country, bar Sweden, with which it is tied.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said in May that Israel should be excluded.

Noting that Russia had not been allowed to take part since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, he said, “Israel shouldn’t either because what we cannot allow is double standards in culture.”

Eurovision is organized by the EBU in cooperation with its members, national public service broadcasters such as Ireland’s RTE and Israel’s Kan, in over 35 countries.

The Irish broadcaster’s announcement came after Spanish Culture Minister Ernest Urtasun said earlier this week that Spain should withdraw from Eurovision if Israel is allowed to participate.

In an interview with Spanish television channel La hora de La 1, Urtasun said Spain could not “normalize Israel’s participation in international events as if nothing is happening.”

“Events like Eurovision or the Vuelta a España brings certain representation of a country,” he said, referring to the ongoing three-week Grand Tour Race in Spain, which has been repeatedly disrupted by pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel protesters, prompting calls for the Israeli team to withdraw.

“In Eurovision’s case, it is not an individual artist who participates but someone who participates on behalf of that country’s citizens,” added Urtasun.

As Israeli artists continue to face scrutiny and pressure over the country’s war in Gaza, an upcoming sold-out show by Israeli electronic group “Infected Mushroom” in Adelaide, Australia, was canceled on Thursday due to pressure from anti-Israel protesters who have been targeting venues hosting the group on its Australian tour under the name “Boycott Infected Mushroom.”

A petition circulated by the protesters — which has so far gained slightly over 500 signatures — declares that the members of the group are “active cultural ambassadors of Zionist ideology,” who “normalize Israeli-settler colonialism, military violence, and the ongoing genocide in Gaza.”

Without providing evidence to back up any of its claims, the protesters claim in the petition that Infected Mushroom has “performed at events directly tied to Israeli military fundraising and nationalist mourning” and has “released music and visuals glorifying Israeli victory and erasing Palestine.”

The petition also cites the group’s fundraising efforts for the Tribe of Nova foundation — which supports survivors and bereaved families of the Hamas-led massacre at the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023 — claiming that the charity supports Israeli “rearmament and IDF initiatives.”

“Their silence on the genocide in Gaza is not apolitical — it is strategic,” the petition insists. “To continue platforming them, especially at a time of mass starvation in Palestine, is a betrayal of any claimed values of inclusivity, justice, or decolonization.”

Unibar Adelaide, the music venue intended to host the performance, announced the cancellation on Instagram, stating that it was doing so to protect its staff from the “vitriol” of those opposed to the Israeli music group’s appearance.

“UniBar ADL is a venue which holds diversity of bookings dear,” the venue said, touting itself as a space which hosts “artists from diverse communities originating from all over the country and the world.”

“Although the Infected Mushroom show proved popular with audiences, not all members of our own community wanted it to proceed,” the statement continued, adding that it takes such feedback “seriously.”

It stressed that those opposed to the group’s performance did not present UniBar with “any compelling evidence that the artist holds or promotes Zionist ideology or is guilty of any other accusations that have been levelled against them,” but said it was nevertheless canceling the show due to safety concerns.

“Paramount, as an independent venue, is the safety of our staff and thousands of artists that have played and will play the UniBar stage,” it explained. “Protection from the vitriol that has been directed toward some of those connected to the venue is front of mind.”

It ended with a thinly veiled rebuke against the anti-Israel protesters who had forced the show’s cancellation, saying that the venue “is apolitical and supports everyone’s right to opinions so long as they are accurate and expressed in a respectful manner, without malice of personal attacks.”

“We hope in future that this is the way public discourse is conducted.”

Boycott Infected Mushroom welcomed UniBar’s decision to cancel the show, but called its statement “weak” and accused the venue of “sitting firmly on the fence.”

Infected Mushroom did not immediately comment on the cancellation.

AFP contributed to this report.