Nemo, the Swiss singer who won the 2024 Eurovision song contest, has said they are handing back their trophy in protest over Israel's participation in next year's event. The 26-year-old, the first non-binary winner of the contest, said on Thursday there was a clear conflict between the Eurovision ideals of unity, inclusion and dignity for all and the decision to allow Israel to compete.
At a Thanksgiving gathering with voters, another candidate in the same race fielded questions about affordability but also about moral leadership when it came to Israel's war in Gaza. A third candidate vying for the same seat devoted much of his campaign's launch video to lambasting the current member of Congress representing the district over the funding he's received from the pro-Israel lobby.
More than 100,000 people rallied in Berlin, protesting against German support for Israel's genocide in the Gaza Strip. Demonstrators marched from Berlin's City Hall to the Grosser Stern on Saturday, following a call from a broad coalition of some 50 groups, including pro-Palestinian organisations, Medico International, Amnesty International, and the opposition Left Party, for a large demonstration. Organisers of the All Eyes on Gaza Stop the Genocide rally demanded an end to German complicity in Israel's genocidal war in the Palestinian enclave.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Wednesday she will seek sanctions and a partial trade suspension against Israel over the war in Gaza. The 27-nation EU is deeply divided in its approach to Israel and the Palestinians, and it's unclear whether a majority will be found to endorse the sanctions and trade measures. Meanwhile, emergency personnel in Qatar dug through the rubble of an Israeli attack on Hamas' political leaders who had gathered in the energy-rich Mideast nation to consider a U.S. proposal
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been able to rely on the United States' absolute backing throughout his country's war on Gaza. While the administration of former US President Joe Biden may have occasionally expressed discomfort over the crises it was enabling in Gaza, the Donald Trump administration has yet to exhibit similar qualms, even going so far in February as to suggest that all of Gaza's population be ethnically cleansed.