ISRAELIS have been warned not to go to the Eurovision Song Contest in Sweden amid fears of a terrorist attack.
Authorities fear terrorist factions “will exploit protests” planned against Israel taking part in this year’s competition.
EPAPolice with bomb dogs outside Malmo Arena, in Malmo, Sweden, on April 26[/caption]
ReutersA view of signs for the Eurovision Song Contest outside the Malmo Arena[/caption]
ISIS members brandishing flags, guns and machetes on the border between Iraq and Syria
Sweden has promised a dazzling show from May 7 to 11, but plans have been marred by demonstrations organised over Israel’s military offensive in Gaza – triggered by Hamas‘ deadly October 7 attack.
Protesters are set to take to the streets on May 9, when Israel will take part in the second semi-final, and again on the day of the final, May 11.
Israel’s National Security Council (NSC) has now urged citizens to avoid travelling to host city Malmo, citing “well-founded concerns” of terrorist attacks.
It comes as ISIS could be gearing up for a new wave of attacks after cops foiled 12 terror plots across Europe in the past year.
There are growing concerns the terror group could leverage the Middle East conflict to launch bloodshed in the continent and spark chaos.
In an unusual move, the Israeli military said its home front command mobile app will also provide “real-time notifications” with any emergency instructions throughout the contest.
Typically, the app alerts Israelis to take shelter from incoming rocket fire.
The security council said it had “a well-founded concern that terrorist elements will exploit the protests and the anti-Israel mood to carry out attacks against Israelis attending Eurovision”.
It has also raised the travel alert for Malmo from level two (potential threat) to level three (moderate threat).
A spokesman for the Israeli Defence Forces said: “This is a unique move adapted for the Eurovision event only and within the defined schedules”.
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organises the contest, resisted calls for Israel and its contestant, Eden Golan, to be excluded.
Israel was permitted to compete after it agreed to modify the lyrics of its original song “October Rain” which the EBU said made reference to the October 7 assault.
Golan will instead perform a version called “Hurricane”.
She told AFP news agency: “I was kind of shocked when the EBU didn’t approve the song. I don’t think the first version was political.”
But Golan, 20, has been told she must not leave her hotel room except from to perform at the show, Swedish paper Expressen reports.
It comes as organisers have been forced to ramp up security measures, with more than 100,000 visitors expected to swarm Sweden’s third-largest city.
Visitors from 89 countries expected in Malmo will have to pass through airport-like security checks when entering venues around the city.
Per-Erik Ebbestahl, Malmo’s security director, said: “There’s a high threat level combined with a lot of people.”
Organisers face the risk of protests escalating into violence, heightened terror threats in the country, and increased tensions with Russia after Sweden’s Nato membership.
In central Malmo there are official posters for Eurovision but also protest banners replicating the same colourful design.
On some, the word Eurovision has been replaced by “genocide” and the words: “Israel out of Eurovision or Eurovision out of Malmo.”
Israel rejects any accusation of genocide in Gaza during its war against Hamas.
Police say security will be tighter compared with when Sweden last hosted the event in 2016.
Petra Stenkula, Malmo police chief, said: “The situation around the world is complex, and also the security for Sweden is different.
“We are ready for anything that can happen.”
Sweden joined Nato in March, two years after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine forced it to rethink its national security policy.
Russia has threatened to take unspecified “political and military-technical counter-measures” in response.
Eurovision begins on May 7 with the first semi-final, followed by a second semi-final two days later and the final on May 11.
It comes as Europe was put on alert following ISIS’s threat towards the four stadiums hosting Champions League quarter-final matches last month.
The Islamic State revealed a sinister poster that included the names of the four high-capacity venues and a message that read: “Kill them all”.
AFPIsrael’s Eurovision contestant Eden Golan is pictured during an interview at her house in Tel Aviv[/caption]
AFPAn aerial view of destroyed buildings in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip[/caption]
