“There were moments when we feared for our lives,” said Sivan Young, a member of the Israeli delegation to the Eurovision Song Contest, on Monday.
A pro-Palestinian mob threatened the Israeli group in the Swiss city of Basel a day earlier.
“We were in a tram traveling throughout the city, with crowds around us. At one point, a pro-Palestinian crowd joined in, a large demonstration,” Young recalled in an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 News.
It was a “very unpleasant experience,” said Young.
“It reflects what’s happening in Europe and in the world … terrible. Antisemitism. Throat-slitting gestures. From our perspective that was a red line,” he said.
“We knew what we were coming into, but we didn’t think [anti-Israeli protests] would be so close and so intense. We are protected by very serious security forces,” he added.
“We knew there would be protests. Last year we were in Malmö; we experienced these things from a distance. This time, it was very close [and it was] much more violent and intense,” he added.
The incident on Sunday took place during the Turquoise Carpet parade, the official opening ceremony that kick-starts the week of Eurovision Song Contest live shows.
Unlike other competitors, Israeli singer Yuval Raphael is accompanied by bodyguards. The security measures highlight the tense atmosphere surrounding the Jewish state’s participation in the international event.
Raphael is a survivor of the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas-led massacre at the Supernova music festival in Israel’s south. She will perform “A New Day Will Rise,” an emotional anthem that speaks to resilience and hope in the aftermath of tragedy.
The delegation is determined, with Young stating: “No one will push us out of any international arena. This only motivated us to wave flags even more, to smile, and to say ‘love you’ to everyone.”
Raphael is set to compete in Eurovision’s second semifinal round on Thursday night.