Hundreds of people marched through Tel Aviv on Tuesday to protest the Israeli government’s treatment of Palestinians in Gaza, during the semi-finals of Eurovision 2019 song contest.
Protesters hoped to send out a message to people travelling to Israel for the concert and raise awareness on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
“Everyone who’s coming from Europe has an obligation to know where they are, what’s happening just an hour’s drive away, what is the situation here and that they are legitimising it essentially, and we need to let them know, because it’s their moral obligation”, said one protester.
Participants in the march paraded singing slogans and carrying signs critical of Israeli government policy.
The first of the two semi-finals in the widely popular Eurovision was held on Tuesday evening, with participants from seventeen countries competing for a place in Saturday’s final. The decision to host the contest in Tel Aviv sparked criticism, in the wake of the ongoing crisis in Gaza.