Arriving with her long lavender-streaked hair and matching nails, Golan performed her song Hurricane wearing a white chiffon gown filled with artificial wind and smoke on stage.

As she performed, many people in Laila, which bills itself as “the best gay bar in Tel Aviv”, expressed hope that she would win. It would send the message that “maybe we’re not hated so much, and the music really won,” said Tal Bendersky, 23, wrapped in an Israeli flag.

But as the votes came in and it became clear that some juries representing the 37 countries with voting rights were offering Golan even a handful of votes, enthusiasm waned.

Fans ranged from jumping around and waving Israeli flags to sitting with their heads bowed, some with their heads in their hands.

‘The people who hate us’

“It’s obviously political,” said Guy, 20, who declined to give his last name because he didn’t want his family to know he was at a gay bar. “Eden was wonderful… but there are people who hate us. They don’t see the whole picture,” he told AFP.

Laila’s manager Tal Shur agreed, “We didn’t get much from the countries. It’s obviously a political thing.” “No one wants to show that they support us.”

In the days before the dazzling competition, Israel had become one of the bookmakers’ favorites with Croatia and Switzerland set to take the lead in the end.

But victory was always a long shot for Israel, as its participation in this year’s edition of the contest was hit by fierce controversy as it continues to bomb and siege Gaza.

The war began with Hamas’ unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, resulting in the deaths of more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

The militants also captured hostages, of whom Israel estimates 128 remain in Gaza, including 36 whom the military says are dead.

Israel’s counterattacks have killed at least 34,971 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.

Golan’s song is an adaptation of an earlier version titled Hurricane October Rain, which was modified after organizers deemed it too political due to its obvious allusions to a Hamas attack.

‘Excellent’

Before Saturday’s contest began, police in the host city of Malmö said at least 5,000 people were demonstrating in the streets outside the venue. Thousands of musicians around the world also called for Israel’s ouster.

The country’s juries largely ignored Israel when voting began late Saturday night, but a separate and equally important public vote gave Israel a huge boost, ultimately catapulting it to a respectable fifth place.

When the public vote came in, fans in Tel Aviv went wild again. “It was amazing,” Schur said, describing Golan’s performance as “perfect”.

“It was nice to see how emotional people got when she came on stage…she did something with us.” “When Israel was given extremely high marks, I felt very happy because it was about music, not politics,” said Nelly Bernardi, 41.

However, he told AFP that he found the first part of the voting “shameful”. “The (jury) marks were given in a political manner… it was absolutely clear.”