RTP, the broadcaster responsible for airing the Eurovision Song Contest, has asked the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) for clarification on the delay in releasing the Portuguese performance in the contest final.

It should be recalled that after Iolanda performed, the EBU did not immediately publish the video of the performance, as it did with other artists. In addition, when it finally did share it, the festival organizer opted to publish the video from the semifinal.

It should be noted that, in the Eurovision final, the Portuguese singer had her nails painted with the pattern of the 'keffiyeh', a scarf that is a symbol of Palestinian resistance and, when she finished performing, she left a message: "Peace will prevail".

Now, the public broadcaster reports that the chairman of the RTP Board of Directors, Nicolau Santos, has asked the EBU for clarification on what happened, although the official said that there is "no evidence that the delay in releasing the video had anything to do with the way Iolanda presented herself on stage".

"She did indeed have designs on her nails that indicated support for Palestine, and even the eye makeup could possibly indicate that, but we have no evidence that this could have led to the delay in releasing the video", said Nicolau Santos.

The chairman of the RTP Board of Directors specified that the Portuguese delegation "reacted immediately when they saw that the video had not been released like the others were, immediately after the end of the performance, and the indication that was given through an exchange of emails was that there was a technical problem".

"It was in this exchange of emails that the person who was responding to our delegation said 'but your contestant has pro-Palestine designs painted on her nails'. We asked 'what does that have to do with it?' (...) and what happened is that the video was released immediately afterwards", he explained, noting that the delegation is still in contact with the organizer and is "waiting for a more complete explanation".

When asked if he was considering filing a formal protest, the official stressed that it is necessary to have consolidated "the indications of what happened and whether there was actually a technical problem or if it was someone in the 'control room' who deliberately delayed the release of the video".

Nicolau Santos also said that on Tuesday there will be a "meeting to analyze, with the people who were in Malmö", the aspects that "should be corrected and debated at the Eurovision level", namely the fact that Israel came first in the public vote, when previously it was in the last places of the table.

It should be noted that Iolanda did not only express her support for Palestine on her nails. The dress that the artist wore during the flag parade in the final - and which she had already worn on Sunday, in the parade on the turquoise catwalk, where she also had her nails painted with the 'keffiyeh' pattern - is from a Palestinian brand, called Trashy Clothing.

It should be recalled that Switzerland won the 68th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, with 591 points, to the sound of 'The Code', a song performed by the artist Nemo. Portugal, in turn, reached 10th place, with 152 points, thanks to the song 'Grito'. Norway came in last, represented by the band Gåte, with only 16 points.

During the performance of the Israeli representative, Eden Golan, boos and whistles were heard inside the Malmö Arena.

In addition, according to journalists present in the arena, Eden Golan was also booed during the flag parade, at the beginning of the ceremony, something that was not noticeable in the television broadcast.

The Israeli spokesperson who announced the score given by that country's jury to the competing songs was also booed by the audience present at the Malmö Arena.

The 68th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest is marked by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which has been going on for decades, but intensified after an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas in Israel on October 7, which caused almost 1,200 deaths, with the country led by Benjamin Netanyahu responding with an offensive that caused more than 34,000 deaths in the Gaza Strip, according to both sides.

This year the contest started with 37 countries, and 25 reached the final. There should have been 26, but the representative of the Netherlands, Joost Klein, was disqualified by the organization, due to an incident during the second semifinal of the contest.

In addition to Switzerland, Croatia, Ukraine, Israel and Portugal, the following countries participated in the final of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest: Sweden, Germany, Luxembourg, Lithuania, Spain, Estonia, Ireland, Latvia, Greece, United Kingdom, Norway, Italy, Serbia, Finland, Armenia, Cyprus, Slovenia, Georgia, France and Austria.

Read Also: Discreetly or not, Iolanda brought Palestine to Eurovision (Portuguese version)