The boycott proposal was voted on by the Board of Directors and approved "by an absolute majority," with 10 votes in favour, four against, and one abstention, RTVE president José Pablo López announced in a post on the social network X.

"Spain will withdraw from Eurovision if Israel remains in the event," wrote José Pablo López.

Spain is the first country in the group known as the "Big 5" to announce this boycott.

The "Big 5" are the public television networks that contribute the most funds to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and, therefore, to the organization of the Eurovision Song Contest.

The "Big 5" are Spain, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Italy, and songs from these countries have direct access to the finals at each edition of the festival.

In addition to Spain, four other countries have already announced a boycott of the 2026 edition if Israel participates: Ireland, Slovenia, Iceland, and the Netherlands.

The boycotts are due to Israel's military attacks on the Palestinian territory of Gaza, which the Spanish government classifies as genocide.

An independent international commission of inquiry of the United Nations (UN) also accused Israel today of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the war on October 7, 2023, with the "intent to destroy" the Palestinians.

"We have come to the conclusion that genocide is taking place in Gaza and will continue to take place, and that responsibility lies with the State of Israel," said the chair of this commission, Navi Pillay, when presenting today the report of the UN Commission's investigation into crimes committed in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has repeatedly argued that Israel should be excluded from international sporting and cultural competitions, as Russia was following the attack on Ukraine in 2022.

Eurovision Song Contest director Martin Green told AFP news agency on Friday that each EBU member can freely decide whether or not to participate in the contest and that this decision will be respected.

"We understand the concerns and opinions (...) regarding the ongoing conflict in the Middle East," said Martin Green.