lots of police, ban on flags and old acquaintances

• Jorn Kompeer

  Domestic editor in Malmö

Sweden is preparing for a much-discussed edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. Exactly at 9 p.m. the well-known Eurovision tune will sound, this time from the city of Malmö. Television viewers from all over the world await a semi-final as always full of traditions, fireworks and countless musical styles.

But not everything is the same as always, because both behind and in front of the scenes it is the most discussed edition in years. From a Dutch perspective, this is partly due to the expected success of participant Joost Klein, who performed his hit in the second semi-final on Thursday Europapa is on stage.

At the same time, it is a lot about the security of the event. Malmö has organized the Eurovision Song Contest twice before (in 1992 and 2013), but never before has an edition been as high-voltage as this one.

Anyone walking through the city these days cannot escape the many police officers patrolling and driving around, sometimes even with police vans that look more like a war tank. Officers have flown in from all over Sweden to help with security. And unlike normal, they are equipped with heavy weapons, which they keep at the ready.

The closer to the Malmö Arena – where the show comes from – the more measures. For example, there is a no-fly zone around the event hall and a temporary system has been installed to keep drones away. “The only drones flying around here are ours to keep an overview,” a police spokesperson explains. Local residents say that there are also snipers on the roofs.

To ensure all this runs smoothly, agents from nearby Denmark and Norway have also come over to help.

The measures are all related to an increased threat, which many European countries – including the Netherlands – have been dealing with for some time. In Sweden this threat is regularly expressed, for example during Quran burnings.

And this week, the Eurovision Song Contest is controversial for many people this week, due to Israel’s participation in the event. Because of the war in Gaza, critics think it is inappropriate for Israel to take office on Thursday. For months, there have been calls for the organizing European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to ban Israel from the Eurovision Song Contest.

Protests are also planned in Malmö in the coming days. According to the organization, tens of thousands of people come from all over the world.

The organization of the Eurovision Song Contest, the Swedish broadcaster SVT, is therefore holding its breath and doing everything it can to keep demonstrators out of the venue. That is why the rules for flags have also been tightened.

Visitors are only allowed to bring in those from participating countries, along with the rainbow flag. Showing the Palestinian flag is expressly prohibited and the directors have been urged to keep any disturbances out of the picture, if there are any.

If everything goes according to plan, the television viewer will probably not notice all the measures and will expect a first semi-final tonight full of spectacle, for which the Eurovision Song Contest is known.

With striking entries in the first part, such as the Irish Bambi Thug, one of the darkest and darkest acts ever at the festival with references to witchcraft. And also Finland, with two artists who named themselves after the Windows95 operating system and started their performance in a large egg.

The top favorite of the evening is probably Croatia, which is seventh. Singer Baby Lasagne performs his song Rim Tim Tagi Dim, which sounds a lot like the German metal band Rammstein. It is about young people in Croatia who are moving abroad en masse because they no longer see a future in their own country.

Luxembourg is also participating tonight. And that is quite special, because that is the first time in thirty years. Broadcasters in Luxembourg thought participation was too expensive all along, but thanks to a contribution from the government, the country is now participating again for the first time since 1993. Singer Tali closes the show with the song Fighter.

In the first semi-final tonight, fifteen countries will try to finish among the top ten. Unlike the final, only votes at home count tonight.