Vienna police bracing for protests and ‘disruption attempts’ at Eurovision next week

Song contest, where anti-Israel demonstrations have been a regular feature, begins May 12 in Vienna; police to ban drones, work with FBI and institute airport-style security

Vienna police expect protests against Israel’s participation in the Eurovision Song Contest to include “blockades and disruption attempts,” they said on Tuesday, calling the competition in the Austrian capital one of the biggest security events they have faced.

A celebration of pop music and high camp, the contest begins May 12 and is taking place in particularly tense circumstances this year as five national broadcasters, including Spanish heavyweight RTVE and Ireland’s RTE, are boycotting after failing to oust Israel from the contest.

A handful of demonstrations, mainly against but also in favor of Israel’s taking part, have been registered so far for next week, with attendance estimated at up to 3,000. Protests must be registered with 48 hours’ notice.

“We expect there will in fact be blockades and disruptive actions, particularly on the day of the final, whether through authorized or unauthorized gatherings,” Xenia Zauner, a senior police official who will oversee the security operation, told a press conference on Tuesday.

Israel will be represented by Noam Bettan, 27, a singer born in Israel to French immigrant parents who hails from the central city of Ra’anana. Bettan will perform “Michelle,” a song in Hebrew, French and English about an unhealthy relationship, and the need to get up and walk away when things aren’t working out. The song is slightly more upbeat than Israel’s previous two submissions after the Hamas-led terror attack of October 7, 2023.

Those performances — by Eden Golan in 2024 and Yuval Raphael in 2025 — were also met with protest, but both singers placed high in the contest. Golan’s “Hurricane” placed second in the audience vote and fifth overall, while Raphael’s “New Day Will Rise” won the audience vote last year in a landslide and came in second overall.

In November, the contest organizers announced a slate of new changes to its voting system, seemingly aimed at assuaging concerns raised by member countries after Israel’s popular vote victory. While the announcement did not not mention Israel by name, the changes matched up to a number of complaints made about Israel.

The following month, a majority of members of the European Broadcasting Union voted to allow Israel to stay in the contest, prompting a series of countries to pull out of it.

Ahead of the competition, police are preparing for a wide range of threats.

The eve of the final, Friday, May 15, is also commemorated by pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel activists as Nakba Day, marking the mass displacement of Palestinians during Israel’s War of Independence. Zauner said that day has “great emotional significance for the pro-Palestine movement.”

Drones will be banned within 1.5 kilometers (0.9 miles) of sites including the contest venue, and the US Federal Bureau of Investigation will set up a task force in New York next week that Austrian authorities can contact around the clock to address cyber threats, police said.

While the general “terrorism alert level” in Austria has been at the second-highest notch for more than two years, there is no specific threat against the contest, said Vienna police Vice President Dieter Csefan.

Those attending the event should expect international airport-level security screenings, and can only bring small, transparent bags inside, police said. Airport-style security will also be set up at a large fan area in front of city hall.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this story.