The Eurovision final lineup is confirmed after 5 more countries are sent packing

VIENNA (AP) — The lineup for the final of the Eurovision Song Contest has been decided, with five more countries sent home after the second semifinal on Thursday.

Fifteen countries battled for 10 of the 25 spots in Saturday's finale of the pan-continental pop competition, with the results decided by votes from national juries and viewers around the world.

Those heading for the final include Denmark’s Søren Torpegaard Lund with the sultry “Før Vi Går Hjem” (“Before We Go Home”), Australian star Delta Goodrem with power ballad “Eclipse” and Bulgarian singer Dara with the catchy “Bangaranga.”

Singers Daniel Žižka from Czechia, Leléka from Ukraine, Alis from Albania, Aidan from Malta, Antigoni from Cyprus, Alexandra Căpitănescu from Romania and Jonas Lovv from Norway also qualified. Performers from Azerbaijan, Luxembourg, Armenia, Switzerland and Latvia were eliminated.

Ten other acts secured a place through a semifinal on Tuesday, including Finland’s Pete Parkkonen and Linda Lampenius, Greek rapper Akylas, Serbian goth metal band Lavina, Moldovan folk-rapper Satoshi and Israeli singer Noam Bettan.

The U.K., France, Germany and Italy automatically qualify for the final because they are among the contest’s biggest funders. Austria, last year’s winner, gets a place in the final as host country.

The contest’s motto is “United by Music,” and it aims to steer clear of politics — often unsuccessfully. Russia was expelled in 2022 after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The 2024 contest in Malmo, Sweden, and last year’s event in Basel, Switzerland, saw pro-Palestinian protests that called for Israel to be expelled over the conduct of its war against Hamas in Gaza. A demonstration against Israel’s participation is planned ahead of Saturday’s final in Vienna.

Five countries — Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Iceland — are boycotting Eurovision this year because of Israel’s inclusion.

Israel has also faced allegations it ran a rule-breaking marketing campaign to get votes for its contestants. The European Broadcasting Union, which runs Eurovision, has toughened voting rules in response, halving the number of votes per person to 10 and tightening safeguards against “suspicious or coordinated voting activity.”

Israel’s Bettan was met with some protest chants when he performed in Tuesday’s semifinal. Unlike in previous years, Palestinian flags are being allowed in the arena and Austrian broadcaster ORF says it will not mute any booing.

The five-country boycott is a revenue and viewership blow to an event that organizers say was watched by 166 million people around the world last year. Bulgaria, Moldova and Romania have returned after skipping the event for artistic or financial reasons in recent years, but the number of participants is still the lowest since 2003.

Still, Eurovision is eyeing expansion, with a spinoff Eurovision Song Contest Asia due to take place in Bangkok in November.

Contest director Martin Green said Thursday he is hopeful Hungary will return to Eurovision for the first time since 2019 now that Prime Minister Péter Magyar has replaced the nationalist-populist leader Viktor Orbán.

And he said the door remains open to the five boycotting countries.

“We’ve made it very clear to them we can’t wait for them to come back,” Green said.

Leleka from Ukraine performs the song "Ridnym" during the second semifinal of the 70th Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, Austria, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Jonas Lovv from Norway performs the song "YA YA YA" during the second semifinal of the 70th Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, Austria, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Delta Goodrem from Australia performs the song "Eclipse" during the second semifinal of the 70th Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, Austria, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Soren Torpegaard Lund from Denmark performs the song "For Vi Gar Hjem" during the second semifinal of the 70th Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, Austria, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Soren Torpegaard Lund from Denmark who performed the song "For Vi Gar Hjem" reacts as votes are announced during the second semifinal of the 70th Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, Austria, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

SEATTLE (AP) — A tourist from Washington state is facing federal charges after a witness recorded what prosecutors say was a video of him hurling a coconut-sized rock at an endangered Hawaiian monk seal just off a Maui beach last week.

Igor Mykhaylovych Lytvynchuk, 38, made arrangements to surrender in the Seattle area Wednesday as special agents with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration were seeking to arrest him, Assistant U.S. Attorney Aislinn Affinito in Honolulu said.

He is charged with harassing and attempting to harass a protected animal.

Lytvynchuk, who lives in Covington, Washington, was in U.S. District Court in Seattle on Thursday. A judge ordered him released pending another court appearance in Honolulu on May 27.

Greg Geist, a federal public defender who represented Lytvynchuk at the hearing, said Lytvynchuk hired an attorney in Hawaii, whose name was not immediately listed in the case docket.

Two supporters who attended the hearing declined to comment.

The video drew widespread condemnation and demands for prosecution in Hawaii, including from Maui’s mayor.

A state Department of Land and Natural Resources officer last week investigated a report of Hawaiian monk seal harassment in Lahaina, the community that was largely destroyed by a deadly wildfire in 2023. A witness showed the officer video of the seal swimming in shallow water while a man watched from shore.

“In the cellphone video, the man can be seen holding a large rock with one hand, aiming, and throwing it directly at the monk seal," prosecutors said in a criminal complaint. The rock, described by a witness as the size of a coconut, narrowly missed the seal's head, but caused the “animal to abruptly alter its behavior,” the complaint said.

When a witness confronted the man, he said "he did not care and was ‘rich’ enough to pay any fines," according to the complaint.

Maui Mayor Richard Bissen said the charges send a clear message that cruelty toward protected wildlife won't be tolerated. He identified the seal as “Lani,” a known and beloved character along Lahaina's waterfront, whose return after the wildfires brought a sense of healing and hope during a difficult time.

But the state natural resources department said in an email it likely was not Lani, as it lacked certain markings.

“Humanity and the instinct to protect what is vulnerable are still values people can unite around," Bissen said in an emailed statement.

The mayor said he called the U.S. attorney in Honolulu to advocate for prosecution.

Lytvynchuk is charged with violations of the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Hawaiian monk seals are a critically endangered species. Only 1,600 remain in the wild.

If convicted, Lytvynchuk, faces up to one year in prison for each charge. He also faces a fine of up to $50,000 under the Endangered Species Act and a fine of up to $20,000 under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Kelleher reported from Honolulu. Associated Press writer Audrey McAvoy in Honolulu contributed to this report.

This undated drivers license photo provided by the U.S. District Court of Hawaii shows Igor Mykhaylovych Lytvynchuk, from Washington state, who is accused of throwing a coconut-sized rock at the seal named "Lani." (U.S. District Court of Hawaii via AP)

This undated drivers license photo provided by the U.S. District Court of Hawaii shows Igor Mykhaylovych Lytvynchuk, from Washington state, who is accused of throwing a coconut-sized rock at the seal named "Lani." (U.S. District Court of Hawaii via AP)

FILE - Cars pass in front of the federal building housing the U.S. District Court in Honolulu on March 7, 2014. (AP Photo/Jennifer Sinco Kelleher, File)