Eurovision Song Contest organizers have said they “regret” that some delegations “didn’t respect the spirit of the rules” in Sweden, the BBC reports.
Italy’s Angelina Mango and Ireland’s Bambie Thug are among contestants who complained of a “tense” and “horrible” atmosphere backstage.
The Dutch singer Joost Klein was also sent home after being accused of intimidating behaviour by a female member of the production crew.
In a statement on Monday, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which runs Eurovision, acknowledged that several contestants had lodged complaints.
“We spoke to a number of delegations during the event regarding various issues that were brought to our attention,” it said.
“The EBU’s governing bodies will, together with the heads of delegations, review the events surrounding the ESC in Malmö to move forward in a positive way and to ensure the values of the event are respected by everyone.”
It added that individual cases will be discussed at a later date.
The contest was overshadowed by protests over Israel’s participation, due to the humanitarian cost of its war on Hamas.
Thousands of people protested on the streets of Malmö, and the country’s representative, Eden Golan, received a mixture of boos and cheers from the audience.
After the grand final, Bambie Thug, who has been outspoken in their pro-Palestinian views, also accused Israel’s national broadcaster, KAN, of “inciting violence” against them during its coverage.
During the first semi-final, one of the station’s commentators noted that the performer had “spoken negatively about Israel”.
“But we can talk about that later,” the commentator added. “Prepare your curses.”
The comment might have been a reference to a lyric in Bambie Thug’s song, which involves placing a hex on an ex-partner, but the singer felt it crossed a line.
“The broadcaster [Kan] has disobeyed the rules and I hope next year they won’t be able to compete because of that,” they told reporters after the contest.
Other participants accused the Israeli delegation of filming them and posting clips online without their permission.
