Anti-Israel graffiti was discovered on Tuesday at the Israeli café in the city of Vienna, Austria, just before the Eurovision semifinal set to take place on Tuesday night.
The phrases "Free Palestine," "Death to the IDF," and "Boycott Israel" were found written on one of the bathroom walls. Vienna Police Department officers arrived at the scene, and the graffiti was quickly erased.
Each country participating in Eurovision received a café designed to suit its country. The café where the anti-Israel graffiti was spray-painted was the one that resembles Israel.
Liza Vigenstein, the owner of the café, told Walla, "All that happened so far is that someone wrote something silly on the bathroom walls. Things like this happen everywhere, and they're not pleasant. Vienna is safer than Berlin. The whole city is filled with security."
Vigenstein agreed with the statement that the cafés hosting the Swedish or Greek delegations likely don't need such security.
Eurovision 2026 semifinal set to air
The first Eurovision 2026 semifinal will air on Tuesday night, but a preview of the results was already seen on Monday when judges from 15 participating countries, along with Italy and Germany - part of the Big 4, the four countries that automatically advance to the final - were revealed.
Noam Bettan, Israel's representative, gave an excellent vocal performance on Monday, despite technical issues beyond his or the delegation's control. During rehearsal, dancer Lihi Freud, who plays "Michelle," was injured by the cameraman while they were in a diamond-shaped element with Noam, but she completed the performance with impressive professionalism.