Joost Klein through to Eurovision Song Contest final

Dutch singer Joost Klein has advanced to the Eurovision Song Contest final in Malmö, as expected. In addition, countries including Latvia, Austria and Norway have also made it through during the second semi-final on Thursday evening.

Shortly before his performance, Klein shared an old photograph of him and his parents together. His song for the contest, Europapa, was dedicated to his father, who died from cancer in 2010 when Klein was 12. His mother passed away a year later from a heart attack. "I hope you can see me shine," Klein wrote with the post on Instagram.

Israel also qualified for the final, despite protests about that country's participation. After it was announced that Israeli participant Eden Golan had received enough votes, there was light cheering in the room.

Golan's performance led to mixed reactions from audience members. There was both "booing and cheers," according to Swedish newspaper Expressen. This was less noticeable during the televised broadcast.

Executive producer Ebba Adeliusson from Swedish broadcaster SVT told Expressen that a recorded applause track is used during the shows. This is only to "provide the most balanced possible sound image for the viewers," she said. “We do not censor sounds from the audience in the arena,” she emphasized.

For months, there has been an ongoing controversy about whether Israel should be allowed to participate due to the war in Gaza. In response to the commotion, organizer Eurovision Broadcasting Union (EBU) repeatedly indicated that the Eurovision Song Contest is a "non-political" event.

Police forcefully removed about ten pro-Palestinian demonstrators from the entrance to the Malmö Arena on Thursday evening before the semi-final. They shouted slogans and waved Palestinian flags in protest against Israel's participation because of the war in the Gaza Strip. There were also protests in the Swedish city later in the evening.

The other countries that qualified for the final on Thursday evening include Greece, Estonia, Georgia and Armenia. After the first semi-final on Tuesday, Croatia, Ukraine, Ireland, Serbia, Portugal, Slovenia, Lithuania, Finland, Cyprus and Luxembourg advanced.

The final will be held on Saturday. Host country Sweden and the so-called Big Five countries of Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom were already assured of a place in the final.