Singer eyed as Israel’s Eurovision entry dies fighting in Gaza

An Israeli military reservist has been killed in the Gaza Strip just weeks after he successfully auditioned on a TV show that picks the country’s submission for the Eurovision Song Contest.

Shaul Greenglick, 26, performed on “Israel’s Rising Star” on Dec. 3 while on furlough from his mobilisation in the war against Hamas. Dressed in army fatigues and lieutenant’s stripes, he sang a popular ballad and was green-lit for the next round in the selection process.

One of the judges, Keren Peles, told Greenglick on the stage: “I’m happy to see you wearing a uniform, because it’s reassuring that someone like you is in uniform. I would be happy to see you representing Israel at Eurovision.”

But Peles, writing after Greenglick’s death in northern Gaza clashes on Tuesday was published, said he had dropped out of the show because of his duties in the infantry reserves.

“I imagined this year differently, as a year of aspiration and of living my dreams,” Greenglick said in a Dec. 14 post on Facebook, which listed his job as a travel health adviser.

“Now I’m living an old dream, of fighting for the country …. A new, different dream will have to wait a bit.”

At least 166 soldiers have been killed in Israel’s Gaza offensive, launched after Hamas gunmen killed more than 1,200 people and kidnapped around 240 in its south on Oct 7. More than 21,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza during the war.

The 2024 Eurovision Song Contest will be hosted in May in Malmo, Sweden.