Newsletter
Newsletter Support JNS

Israel’s Noa Kirel finishes third at Eurovision

It was the best finish for Israel since Netta won the song contest in 2018.

Israel's Noa Kirel at the Eurovision Song Contest final in Liverpool, May 13, 2023. Source: Twitter.
Israel’s Noa Kirel at the Eurovision Song Contest final in Liverpool, May 13, 2023. Source: Twitter.

Israeli pop star Noa Kirel finished in third place at Saturday night’s Eurovision Song Contest final in Liverpool behind Sweden and Finland.

The 22-year-old IDF veteran from the central Israeli city of Ra’anana was aiming to become the fifth Israeli to win the song contest since the Jewish state first entered the annual event in 1973 and the first since Netta Barzilai and her song “Toy” emerged the victor in 2018.

Kirel finished with 362 points for her performance of the song “Unicorn,” which she co-wrote alongside Doron Medalie, Yinon Yahel and May Sfadia. Kirel came in second place in the jury vote but fifth in the televoting.

Sweden’s Loreen took the top prize with 583 points for her performance of “Tattoo,” becaming the second performer to win the contest twice after Ireland’s Johnny Logan did it in 1980 and 1987. The 39-year-old daughter of Moroccan immigrants also won in 2012 for her song “Euphoria.”

Finland finished in second place with 526 points for Käärijä’s song “Cha Cha Cha.”

Kirel took the stage shortly after a tenuous ceasefire took effect on Saturday night between Israel and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, with the Gaza-based terrorist group continuing to fire intermittent rockets at southern Israeli communities and Israeli responding with aerial strikes.

Kirel thanked her legion of fans in Israel and around the world for their support in an Instagram post that received nearly 300,000 likes and featured an image of her on stage proudly displaying an Israeli flag.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Noa Kirel (@noakirel)

“Penn does not have a strong chance of prevailing on appeal but makes, narrowly, a showing of irreparable harm,” U.S. District Judge Gerald J. Pappert wrote in his ruling.
Jeanne Litvin, 78, who had been missing since April 14, was reportedly found at Community Hospital of Huntington Park, where she had been taken in as a “Jane Doe” patient.
“Some actions that took place over the weekend violated the student code of conduct and the college’s time, place and manner policies,” a college spokesman told JNS.
The proposed venture between US Desalination and IDE Technologies would produce up to 50 million gallons of drinking water daily by treating seawater from the Gulf of Mexico.
A lawyer for the suspect’s ex-wife stated that his client and her family were “detained 10.5 months for a crime their father/ex-husband committed.”
“My opponent has no history of standing up for the Jewish community. I’ve spent 30 years earning trust through substantive legal and legislative work,” Esther Panitch told JNS.