Israel's Eurovision entry Noam Bettan was met with boos and shouts of “Stop the genocide” during the first semi-final in Vienna on Tuesday. The 28-year-old singer advanced to Saturday's final despite a mixed reception from the crowd at the Wiener Stadthalle.
Five countries—Portugal, Georgia, Montenegro, Estonia and San Marino—were eliminated after the popular vote. San Marino's act featured veteran British pop star Boy George joining entrant Senhit for the song Superstar, which he co-wrote. Qualifying nations alongside Israel included Moldova, Sweden, Croatia, Greece, Finland, Belgium, Lithuania, Poland and Serbia.
Bettan performed inside a shiny diamond, wearing a black outfit with female dancers in black and white bodysuits. Earlier, BBC commentator Rylan Clark noted “a lot of controversy” surrounding Israel's participation due to its military action in Gaza. Several countries, including Ireland, Iceland, the Netherlands, Spain and Slovenia, boycotted the event in protest.
The Israeli singer also received a formal warning from Eurovision organisers after filming videos urging fans to use all 10 of their semi-final votes for him. Eurovision director Martin Green confirmed the warning, stating that within 20 minutes they contacted the Kan delegation to stop distribution and remove the videos from platforms.
UK entrant Look Mum No Computer (Sam Battle) said people can “express their opinions” at the contest, noting that the audience is unedited and allowed to wave flags within size and safety rules. Tuesday's semi-final also featured standout performances from Croatia's Lelek with face tattoos, Greece's Akylas in a tiger print outfit, and Lithuania's Lion Ceccah painted silver in a Grim Reaper-like costume.
