Israel will participate in the Eurovision Song Contest that will take place in Malmö, Sweden, between May 7 and 11. After repeated requests asking that the country not be allowed to participate in the competition and a letter sent by 400 celebrities asking the organization to let Israel participate, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) decided to ignore the criticism and decided, like in previous years, to allow the country to compete.
However, the country's participation was in jeopardy when Israeli singer Eden Golan announced she would perform "October Rain," a song about the Israeli soldiers murdered in Gaza. The organization decided the song was too "political" and rejected the submission.
According to Hanson, who is part of the selection committee, the song wasn't accepted because it didn't represent the current situation of the country: "We have to choose a song that reflects our situation and shows the world that we are here to stay," he said in statements collected by Spanish newspaper El Mundo.
'Hurricane,' the new song that Israel will perform at Eurovision
However, after a long debate, the Israeli station KAN, which is responsible for choosing the Eurovision song, finally decided the submit the song "Hurricane." The song, also performed by the singer Eden Golan, has passed the screening and was approved for the competition, according to a statement the European Broadcasting Union sent to the BBC:
The EBU can confirm that the official submission from its Israeli Member Kan has been deemed eligible to compete in the Eurovision Song Contest in May. The Contest's Reference Group, its governing board, made the decision to accept the song 'Hurricane' for the upcoming competition after careful scrutiny of the lyrics. It was agreed that 'Hurricane' met the necessary criteria for participation in accordance with the rules of the competition.
The song, composed by Keren Peles, Avi Ohayon and Stav Beger, will be officially unveiled next Sunday, March 10 at 9:30 pm local time at a live event organized by radio station KAN, according to The Times of Israel.
