Austrian police launched a large operation near the Eurovision Song Contest venue in Vienna shortly before the final began on Saturday evening, as masked pro-Palestinian activists staged a protest against Israel’s participation.
The demonstrators gathered on the steps of the city’s main library, chanting slogans and holding placards. Officers carried members of an initial group of protesters down the steps, only for a second group to move into position shortly afterwards.
The library is located at a metro station close to the Vienna Stadthalle, the venue where the contest is being held.
Earlier in the day, several thousand people took part in a separate demonstration in Vienna against Israel’s participation in the international music competition. That protest passed peacefully, with no arrests or major incidents, a police spokesman told dpa.