Disunited in music Frustration and fury as Israel row clouds Eurovision

The official motto of the 68th edition of Eurovision is "united by music", but as the continent's sequined masses descended on the Swedish city of Malmö for tonight's grand final, music's ability to heal and bridge divides was looking in serious doubt.

- Philip Oltermann

In the run-up to the contest's main event, the Netherlands' performer, Joost Klein, missed his slot in the dress rehearsals after being investigated by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) over an unexplained "incident".

At a press conference on Thursday night several performers, including Klein, had signalled their frustration with the fact that the debate around Israel's inclusion guaranteed after singer Eden Golan qualified from the semi-finals - was set to dominate the world's largest live music event.

Klein, who is due to perform just before Golan tonight, was asked at a press conference if his pop anthem to free movement, Europapa, could live up to the competition's unifying motto. He said: "I think that's a good question for the EBU."

In March, the association of broadcasters ruled that Israel was allowed to compete as long as it changed the lyrics to its entry, then called October Rain, about the trauma of the 7 October Hamas massacre. The EBU has defended its decision by saying Eurovision is "a non-political music event".

Golan, 20, had been ordered by Israel's national security agency to stay in her hotel room between performances and was taken to dress rehearsals in a convoy of cars. At the line-up of semi-finalists, she cut a forlorn figure near the stage exit, not least because the other participants did not appear willing to volunteer gestures of solidarity.