A bizarre satire series depicting a possible Islamic State attack on the Eurovision Song Contest will no longer air this May, following warnings from the European Broadcasting Union.
The Israeli public broadcaster Kan was set to broadcast Douze Points ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest, but has now agreed to delay its airing until after the final on 18 May.
Douze Points is a three-part series about a gay singer of Muslim France who is representing France in an unnamed international song contest.
The entrant is being extorted by Islamic State to carry out an attack in Tel Aviv.
When in real life, Bilal Hassani, a queer man from a Moroccan Muslim family, is representing France this year with his song Roi at the grand Eurovision Song Contest final in… you guessed it, Tel Aviv.
After the EBU, who are at the helm of Eurovision, noticed the glaring similarities between the show and real life, they issued a statement saying they were having ‘constructive discussions’ with Kan over Douze Points.
The channel seemed fairly certain the series would go ahead as planned, with a spokesperson saying that ‘the French understand comedy’.
However, the series has now been delayed after the EBU said the series posed ‘significant security, political and legal ramifications’.
A statement from Kan read: ‘Members of the committee believe that the public interest necessitates the public broadcaster to refrain from endangering holding the competition in Israel for any reason.
‘The series will be part of the broadcast schedule after the competition’s final.’
The Eurovision Song Contest will take place in Tel Aviv this May, with semi-finals beginning on the 14th.
There have been calls to boycott Israel’s hosting of Eurovision due to their occupation of Palestinian territories; however, last year’s winner Netta and this year’s host Assi Azar have both opposed the idea of a boycott.
Assi told Metro.co.uk: ‘ I don’t want to give any room to people that want to ban something that’s all about music. Leave the politics to the politicians.
‘The only way to create peace and love is by communicating, through meeting and talking – not through banning. The people who want to celebrate hate, Eurovision is not the place for them.’
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