Basel (QNN)- Polish artist Justyna Steczkowska has reportedly confirmed that she will no longer take part in any initiatives related to Eurovision, saying her “conscience does not allow it” due to Israel’s participation amid the ongoing genocide in Gaza.
According to Super Express, a Polish daily tabloid newspaper, in a recent interview, Steczkowska revealed that she is completely distancing herself from the event, with the main reason being the issue of Israel.
She does not want to be associated in any way with an event that permits Israel’s participation. She also revealed that, for the same reason, she turned down an offer to sit on the jury for Germany’s national selection.
At the same time, she stressed that she does not judge other artists who decide to perform. Having taken part in the competition herself, she is rooting for this year’s participants, including Poland’s representative, Alicja Szemplińska.
Steczkowska has become one of the icons of Poland’s presence at the Eurovision Song Contest. Her performance last year drew millions of viewers to their TVs, and the song Gaja quickly became a hit online.
Many fans of the contest still believe that the show she presented in Basel was the best Polish performance in the history of the event. Although she ultimately placed 14th—which for some felt slightly disappointing—almost everyone agreed she represented the country with dignity.
Her remark comes after months of growing calls to ban Israel’s participation in the contest over the genocide in Gaza where more than 72,000 Palestinians have been killed.
Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, Netherlands and most recently Iceland withdrew from this year’s contest.
The five countries had threatened to boycott this year’s edition of the glitzy music contest, due to be held in Vienna in May, if Israel took part, citing its genocidal war on Palestinians in Gaza – as well as confirmations that it unfairly intervened in the most recent competition to the benefit of its entrant in what reportedly was an attempt to politicise Eurovision.
The issue was initially supposed to be resolved with a vote in November 2024. But a few days after the announcement of a ceasefire agreement in Gaza on October 10, 2025 which Israel has violated repeatedly by killing hundreds of people and blocking the entry of much-needed aid, the EBU postponed the decision until its ordinary general assembly in Geneva.
Later, the contest’s organising body declined to expel Israel over the genocide. It said that it would instead introduce new rules “to reinforce trust and protect [the] neutrality” of the contest that would discourage governments from influencing the outcome.
That prompted the five countries to swiftly announce they would boycott the competition.
Russia was banned from competing in 2022 due to “the unprecedented crisis in Ukraine.” Critics and broadcasters, however, pointed to the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the West Bank under Israeli occupation.
The president of Slovenian broadcaster RTV noted that while the EBU banned Russia from Eurovision almost immediately after it invaded Ukraine in 2022, it "does not dare reject Israel".
In May that year, the EBU formally suspended its Russian members, indefinitely revoking their broadcasting and participation rights for future editions of Eurovision. Russia has not competed since.
RTÉ, the Irish broadcaster, said participation was “unconscionable given the appalling loss of lives in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there” while RTVE in Spain said participating would engender “distrust” in the organisation given the depth of feeling over Gaza.
The Spanish broadcaster RTVE also said it would not broadcast the contest or the semi-finals in Vienna next year, describing the process of decision-making as “insufficient” and engendering “distrust”.
Spain’s Culture Minister, Ernest Urtasun, backed the boycott. He said: “You can’t whitewash Israel given the genocide in Gaza. Culture should be on the side of peace and justice. I’m proud of an RTVE that puts human rights before any economic interest.”
The Slovenian national broadcaster, RTVSLO – the first to threaten a boycott this summer – said participation “would conflict with its values of peace, equality and respect”. It said it was “on behalf of the 20,000 children who died” in Israel’s genocidal war on Palestinian people in Gaza.
Stefan Eiriksson, director-general of Icelandic national broadcaster RÚV, said: "There is no peace or joy connected to this contest as things stand now. On that basis, first and foremost, we are stepping back while the situation is as it is."
RÚV said Israel's participation had "created disunity among both members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and the general public".
If the EBU fails to act, it risks a major split within Europe’s most-watched cultural event. For many broadcasters, the contest is no longer just about music, but about taking a stand on Gaza.
The decision by the five countries means they will neither participate in nor broadcast the event, which is scheduled to take place in Vienna.
Over the past two years, Israel has faced objections to its participation in Eurovision not only by EBU members but also by contestants themselves.
Nemo, the Swiss singer who won 2024's contest, said that they backed calls for Israel to be excluded, saying the country's actions in Gaza were "fundamentally at odds with the values that Eurovision claims to uphold, peace, unity, and respect for human rights".
In May 2025, more than 70 past Eurovision contestants released an open letter calling for the EBU to ban Israel from participating.
Embroiled in diplomatic tension, the contest’s organizers announced the contest will have 35 participants, the lowest ever participation since 2003.
