The threat comes from all sides: heavy security measures at ‘most politically sensitive Eurovision Song Contest ever’

Malmö, Sweden’s third largest city, is preparing to welcome hundreds of thousands of visitors from almost 90 countries. But ‘the annual celebration of pop and kitsch’, which is followed live on TV by 200 million people, is in danger of falling prey to protests and controversy. Not to mention terror.

Draconian measures

Police and security officers have been summoned to Malmö from all over Sweden. They also receive help from colleagues from Denmark and Norway. Some officers are given larger and more powerful firearms. Additional cameras and drones are also used to keep a permanent eye on things. And to gain access to the Malmö Arena, where the show takes place, all spectators will have to pass a thorough security check have to undergo, just like in airports. Bags are not allowed inside.

“The Swedish police are used to dealing with complex challenges,” Malmö police chief Petra Stenkula told the BBC. “We are well prepared.” Per-Erik Ebbestahl, safety director of Malmö, also confirms this: he even apprenticed with colleagues from Liverpool, the city that organized the Eurovision Song Contest last year. “They helped us a lot.”

Controversial edition

That this is not an unnecessary luxury is proven by a 23-page threat analysis that the Swedish public broadcaster SVT was able to view. That internal police report lists a whole host of risks for what is already being called ‘the most politically sensitive Eurovision Song Contest ever’.

“I think it is clear that the uncertainty in the world has also affected the Eurovision Song Contest,” said police chief Petra Stenkula, referring to the war in Gaza. “In Sweden, and especially in Malmö, there were already protests against Israel’s participation in the competition.” In recent weekends, up to 20,000 pro-Palestinian demonstrators and pro-Israeli counter-demonstrators took to the streets. The planned demonstration next Thursday, when the Israeli entry takes part in the (second) semi-final, is expected to attract even more people. “Hopefully this event will be as disciplined as the past weekends.”

The threat analysis also mentions possible Muslim terror and calls Sweden a “priority target” for violent jihad. Since August last year, the terror level has been raised to 4 (on a scale of 5) after a series of Quran burnings that angered Muslims. Just on Friday, a man and a woman set fire to a Koran and a Palestinian flag, just steps from the Malmö Arena. There is no law in Sweden prohibiting the sacrilege of religious texts, even though such acts invariably lead to tensions with Muslims.

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Russian threat

Cyber ​​attacks and sabotage of the broadcasts themselves are also not excluded. This involves looking at Russia, which still has an open account with both the European Broadcasting Union, the organizer of the song festival, as well as with Sweden itself. The invasion of Ukraine not only led to Russia’s expulsion from the Eurovision Song Contest, but also accelerated Sweden’s accession to NATO. Moscow previously threatened to take unspecified “political and military-technical countermeasures”.

Enough reasons to drastically increase security in Malmö. Also because of a newspaper poll Sydsvenskan shows that more than half of the 360,000 residents, including a large Palestinian community and approximately 1,200 deeply religious Jews, say they are “fairly” or “very concerned” about the security situation.

“There are three exciting shows coming up,” said Ebba Adielsson, executive producer of the Eurovision Song Contest for the Swedish Public Broadcaster. “We know the debate raging outside, we are aware of the demonstrations, we hear the sighs and respect them. But I sincerely hope that these protests do not overshadow the celebration too much.”