The winner of last year's Eurovision Song Contest has said calls to boycott this year's event in Tel Aviv is simply "spreading darkness".
Israeli singer Netta Barzilai, who dazzled audiences in Portugal last year with her Me Too-inspired song "Toy", said calls for a boycott went against the purpose of Eurovision.
"Being on the same stage no matter what your religion is - your ethnicity, your colour - from all these countries, all these cultures combined together, this is a festival of light," Ms Barzilai said.
"For people to boycott light is spreading darkness, is doing the exact opposite thing, and that's why I think they might be going against their own beliefs."
In the lead up to the 14-18 May contest, high-profile artists including Pink Floyd's Roger Waters and British singer Peter Gabriel have called on Eurovision to abandon Israel over the country's treatment of Palestinians.
Netta Barzilai from Israel celebrates after winning the Eurovision song contest in Lisbon, Portugal. Source: AAP
Asked whether she would perform for Palestinians, Barzilai said: "I wasn't invited, but if my singing could solve problems, I would go."
Barzilai, 26, declined to comment on Israel's recent elections, which saw right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu win a fifth term.
"When I will say my political opinion, I will bring hearts apart instead of bringing them together," she said.
Israeli Singer Netta Barzilai won last year's Eurovision Song Contest with her Me Too-inspired performance "Toy". Source: AAP
Israel has occupied the West Bank since the 1967 Six-Day War.
It has also fought three wars with Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist movement that rules the Gaza Strip, since 2008 and has blockaded the enclave for more than a decade.
