 "Gaza War: Israel to purge Eurovision song lyrics of allusion to Hamas attack")
The leading Israeli entry for the Eurovision Song Contest is “October Rain,” a ballad sung by female soloist Eden Golan.
The contest organizers took issue with verses that seemed to reference Hamas’ October 7 attack, so Israel agreed to change the lyrics, according to Israel’s national broadcaster Kan, which made the announcement on Sunday.
This year’s Eurovision is scheduled to take place in the Swedish city of Malmo from May 7–11. The competition bills itself as a non-political event and can disqualify contestants deemed to have violated that rule.
Linguistics from the song were leaked to the media and later verified by Kan. Lines like “There’s no air left to breathe” and “They were all good children, each one of them” seem to refer to the people who sought refuge while Hamas gunmen massacred and abducted people at an outdoor music festival and other locations that ignited the Gaza War.
Kan stated that it has requested that the authors of “October Rain” and “Dance Forever,” the second-place finalist, modify their lyrics while maintaining their creative liberty. After that, it will formally select the song to transmit to the Eurovision selection committee.
The European Broadcasting Union, the body that oversees Eurovision, previously declared that it was examining the lyrics.
The Israeli broadcaster announced that it granted the president of the nation, Isaac Herzog,’s request to implement the modifications.
“The president emphasized that at this time in particular, when those who hate us seek to push aside and boycott the state of Israel from every stage, Israel must sound its voice with pride and its head high and raise its flag in every world forum, especially this year,” Kan said.
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