Spain withdraws from 2026 Eurovision musical contest

MADRID, Dec 5 (KUNA) -- Spain declared on Friday withdrawing from the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest due in the Austrian capital Vienna in retaliation for allowing the Israeli occupation to partake in it.
Spain's Public Radio (RTVE) said Spain pulled out of the contest after the European Broadcasting Union's general assembly voted in favor of keeping the Israeli occupation in the contest.
The voting came in favor of the Israeli occupation although Spain and seven other European countries called for in-camera balloting and making a public declaration to annul Tel Aviv's participation due to the massacres in Gaza.
RTVE said that it would not broadcast news about the musical contest despite its wide popularity in Spain.
Meanwhile, chairman of Spain's national public broadcasting authority, RTVE (Radio Television Espanola), Jose Pablo Lopez Sanchez, described on his X official account the musical contest as a "festival dominated by geopolitical interests amid internal rifts." Spain had declared last September that it would not partake in the contest.
The nation is one of five mostly qualified states to the finals -- namely the UK, France, Italy and Germany. (end) hnd.rk