Helen Mirren, Boy George and Scooter Braun among celebrities endorsing Israel’s inclusion in Eurovision 2024

Eurovision has faced calls to remove Israel from the competition in light of Gaza attacks

Helen Mirren, Boy George, Scooter Braun and Gene Simmons are among several high-profile figures who have signed a letter supporting Israel’s continued participation in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest.

Last week, Israel announced that 20-year-old Eden Golan would be representing them at this year’s competition, which will take place in Sweden in May.

In light of Israel’s bombing of Gaza over recent months, Eurovision has faced increasing pressure from fringe groups and other participants to disqualify the country from taking part in the competition. The UK’s entrant, Years and Years frontman Olly Alexander, came under fire for referring to Israel as an “apartheid regime”.

The Contest rejected calls for Israel to be removed in December and has not changed its stance since.

Still, on Wednesday (14 February), the Los Angeles-based industry body Creative Community For Peace published a letter backed by more than 400 entertainment industry figures expressing support for the continued involvement of Israel in the competition.

The letter states: “We believe that unifying events such as singing competitions are crucial to help bridge our cultural divides and unite people of all backgrounds through their shared love of music.”

“Those who are calling for Israel’s exclusion are subverting the spirit of the Contest and turning it from a celebration of unity into a tool of politics.”

Helen Mirren, Boy George and Scooter Braun are in support of Israel’s inclusion in Eurovision 2024 (Getty)

Golan was picked to represent Israel following a TV competition, on which she dedicated a rendition of Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Wanna Miss A Thing” to the hostages taken by Hamas on 7 October.

Other signatories include Julianna Marguiles, Debra Messing, Liev Schreiber, Selma Blair, Emmy Rossum and Ginnifer Goodwin. The letter also includes individual statements of support.

In his comments, Scooter Braun said: “Music is a place for unity not division. It is a language that should always bring us together. Artists should never be discriminated against for who they are, who they love, or where they’re born. These boycott efforts do nothing but distract from the uplifting and unifying power of music – something we need now more than ever.”

Former Jeopardy! host Mayim Bialik also voiced her belief that Israel should be allowed to partake in Eurovision. “After a horrendous violent attack on Israeli civilians, calls for boycotts and excluding Israeli artists from international events simply because they are Israeli is abhorrent and shameful,” she wrote. “Targeting Israeli musicians in this way tarnishes the unifying spirit that is Eurovision.”

Former ‘Jeopardy!’ host Mayim Bialik added her name to the list (Getty Images)

KISS frontman Gene Simmons also pointed to the unifying power of music in his remarks, adding: “It’s the one language that everyone can understand. It’s a beautiful thing and a great way to bring people together. Those advocating to exclude an Israeli singer from Eurovision don’t move the needle towards peace, but only further divide the world.”

In 2022, Russia was banned from taking part in the competition following criticism from a number of countries in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine. The country did not return to the competition last year.

The Eurovision Song Contest will take place in Malmö, following Swedish artist Loreen winning for a second time in 2023.