A group of 170 Belgian artists and cultural figures has signed an open letter urging public broadcaster RTBF to withdraw from the Eurovision Song Contest 2026, in protest against Israel’s confirmed participation in the competition.
Open letter published by Belgian artists
The letter, published on 18 December by La Libre, is signed by well-known names from Belgium’s cultural scene, including Yolande Moreau, Thierry Michel, Scylla, Florence Mendez, David Greuze and David Murgia. The signatories criticise the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) for maintaining Israel’s participation in Eurovision 2026, while recalling that Russia was excluded from the contest in 2022 following its invasion of Ukraine.
“Yes, Israel should have been excluded from Eurovision. Otherwise, they will be given another opportunity to normalize crimes against Palestinians.”
In the letter, the artists accuse Eurovision of being used as a tool for “art-washing”, claiming that participation in major cultural events helps project a positive international image while “obscuring the realities of the conflict in Gaza”.
Questioning Eurovision’s neutrality
The letter also questions the EBU’s insistence on political neutrality. The artists argue that allowing Israel to take part is already a political choice in itself.
They highlight the role of Israel’s public broadcaster, KAN, which they say has close ties to the Israeli government and often echoes official positions. In their view, this makes it hard to claim that Eurovision can truly stay apolitical in the current situation.
“Claiming neutrality while allowing Israel to participate is not credible”
Criticism of Belgian broadcasters’ stance
While several broadcasters, including Spain, Ireland, Iceland, the Netherlands and Slovenia, have chosen to withdraw from Eurovision 2026 following the EBU’s decision, Belgian broadcasters VRT and RTBF have so far confirmed their participation and appear in the official list of competing countries for the 2026 edition.
The artists describe this choice as a failure of public service responsibility, arguing that neutrality is no longer credible in this context. The letter specifically targets RTBF, calling on the broadcaster to reconsider its position and suspend participation for as long as Israel remains part of the contest.
“For these reasons, we call on RTBF to honour its public service mission by cancelling its participation in Eurovision 2026 for as long as a state that violates the foundations of our shared humanity remains welcome in the contest.”
At the time of writing, RTBF has not issued a response to the letter.
Belgium’s Eurovision journey
Belgium was one of the debutant countries at the beginning of the Eurovision Song Contest back in 1956. For the first edition, countries could submit two songs, and for Belgium that year, ‘Messieurs les noyès de la Seine’ by Fud Leclerc and ‘Le plus beau jour de ma vie’ by Mony Marc represented the nation. To this day, we do not know the final results of Eurovision 1956. Belgium have taken part in 64 Eurovision Song Contests; however, they have only ever won once: in 1986 with Sandra Kim and the song ‘J’amie la vie’, scoring 176 points.
Belgium chose Red Sebastian to represent the nation with “Strobe Lights” in 2025. Competing in the first semi-final, Belgium scored 23 points, placing fourteenth and ultimately missing out on the Grand Final for the second year in a row.
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News Source: RTBF
Photo Credit: Sarah Louise Bennett / EBU
Giwrgos Oiko