Just like almost every my actions at the United Nations General Assembly stood on the side of justice for the people of Palestine, I put this piece together in arguing the case for full recognition of a Palestinian state, mounting a strong critique of Israel and the U.S. positions, highlighting contributions from allies and sympathizers, and weaving in the incident of the “Israeli spy posing as ISIS fighter and imam in Libya.” while incorporating Nigeria’s position as expressed at UNGA.
The question before the world today is not whether Palestine deserves statehood but whether the global order still has integrity. In recent years, the international community has been confronted with the stark reality: in Gaza, in the West Bank, in the discourse of power, the Palestinian people remain subjugated, voiceless, and disposable. The continued refusal by Israel, backed by the United States, to permit full Palestinian sovereignty is not merely a geopolitical dispute, it is an indictment of moral hypocrisy, international law, and human dignity.
If the revelation that an Israeli operative infiltrated Libyan ISIS ranks by posing as a mosque imam speaks to anything, it is this: forces of domination will hide behind religion, chaos, extremism, and propaganda. When agents of occupation disguise themselves as extremists, they sow confusion, discredit real resistance, and deflect blame from the systems of occupation themselves. That masquerade must not blind us to the underlying injustice: decades of dispossession, displacement, bombing campaigns, blockade, and systemic denial of citizenship, mobility, and rights.
The principle of self‑determination is embedded in the United Nations Charter and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The Palestinian people have long been promised sovereignty over their lands. Recognition would affirm their dignity, endorse their claim to territory (pre‑1967 lines, East Jerusalem), and signal that they are not mere objects of negotiation, but full subjects of international law. The denial of recognition turns them into perpetual orphans of diplomacy.
This is a call for moral accountability and humanitarian rescue. Recognition is more than symbolic. It can legitimize Palestine’s ability to join treaties, to bring suits in the International Court of Justice, to secure reparations, to demand accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity. In Gaza especially, where clinics, schools, shelters, and civilian life have been shattered, recognition is an act of moral rescue. It says to the world: their bodies matter, their losses matter, their breath matters.
The 2025 United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) convenes at a moment of extreme global contradictions. On one hand, the assembly hall echoes with lofty commitments to peace, human rights, and international cooperation. On the other, Gaza lies in ruins—its people subjected to one of the most brutal, sustained military offensives of the modern era.
The world watches in horror as Israeli forces unleash advanced weaponry not just drones, but now autonomous robotic systems with lethal capacity reaching 300 meters. This is not just war; it is technologized annihilation of a civilian population. Yet, while Israel escalates its aggression, its Prime Minister appears in New York not to account for the carnage, but to boast of military “innovation” and unrelenting resolve. All of this occurs within the very institution, the UN that was created to prevent such acts of impunity.
Ultimately, the world faces a trust crisis; not just between governments, but between nations and their people, between institutions and the principles they claim to uphold. If the UN cannot protect the rights of a besieged population under its watch, then its very foundation is at stake.
Shame on Israel and it’s ally. Despite all their military might and intelligence network, they are not winning the wars. From Gaza to global opinion, Israel is losing moral credibility, strategic clarity and diplomatic ground. Tlits actions expose desperation, not dominance, fueling resistance, isolating allies, and eroding it’s legitimacy on every front.
Israel over reliance on force has backfired. It may win battles, but it is losing the war of justice, humanity, and global conscience. It’s aggression breed more resistance, not peace. Every missile fired deepens it’s isolation, proving military superiority cannot secure lasting legitimacy or moral victory.
Now is the time for the world, not just sympathizers of Palestine to stand firmly for justice, truth, and real accountability. Not through endless negotiation with deceivers, but through action that affirms the value of every human life regardless of whose ally the violator may be.
Meanwhile, Arab leaders continue to meet, negotiate, and posture but to what end? If the key players in the so-called “deal” do not trust each other, who exactly are the Arab League states negotiating with? Their time is wasted, their leverage eroded, and their unity splintered by vague promises and shifting alliances. The Arab street is no longer silent, but the Arab leadership seems unable or unwilling to shift the balance.
This entire saga sharply contrasts with the legacy of African decolonization, particularly Nigeria’s independence, which we commemorate at this time of year. Nigeria’s emergence as a sovereign state in 1960 was built on a global consensus that no people should live under permanent subjugation. Yet today, that same moral consensus falters in the face of Palestinian suffering. Where is the post-colonial solidarity? Where is the will to enforce the self-determination that the UN Charter enshrines?
As Nigeria’s delegation rightly noted at this year’s UNGA, peace cannot be selective. The suffering of Palestinians cannot be treated as background noise to diplomacy. The time for moral ambiguity has passed. This raises urgent questions: What is the value of the UN Charter? Who enforces its tenets? And if violators are among the most powerful, what recourse do the oppressed have?
Even more bewildering is the dissonance within the U.S.- Israel alliance. President Trump, speaking from the sidelines, cryptically announced an impending “deal like we’ve never seen before,” even as Netanyahu signals the exact opposite a deepening of hostilities. The result is not clarity, but a public theater of deception. One begins to wonder: do even the oppressors trust one another anymore? And if they don’t, what then is the nature of their alliance?
America’s support for Israel is no longer strategic,vit is subservient. The question is no longer about whether the U.S. supports Israel; it’s whether Israel now dictates U.S. posture on global affairs. The asymmetry is blatant: the U.S. shields Israel from international accountability, even when its policies conflict with stated American values of democracy and human rights. In this light, America appears both enabler and hostage.
Recognition by states across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Europe would tilt the chessboard of international power. It would challenge the monopoly of narrative and force held by the Israeli–U.S. alliance. It would also embolden other oppressed peoples and highlight that sovereignty is not a reward from powerful states but a right owed to the oppressed.
A recognized state can more fully participate in UN organs, regional blocs, and multilateral forums. It can negotiate with states on equal footing, receive state‑to‑state aid, diplomatic protection, and security guarantees. Recognition would also give weight to calls for a two‑state solution under international auspices.
Israel’s Structural Apartheid, an ethnic cleansing and blockade by all definitions.The Israeli state, through settlement expansion, forced displacement, separation walls, military checkpoints, and the Gaza blockade, has institutionalized an apartheid regime. The blockade on Gaza, a 20-year siege has forced starvation, lack of water, electricity, medical supplies, and food, turning civilian life into a daily struggle for survival. Israel’s military campaigns, including the repeated bombardment of civilian zones, cannot be justified as self-defense when whole populations are herded into open prisons.
The United States provides Israel with trillions in military assistance, diplomatic shielding (notably via repeated vetoes in the UN Security Council), and moral cover. This alliance empowers Israel to act with impunity. When the U.S. blocks even symbolic resolutions for ceasefire or humanitarian corridors while calling itself a champion of human rights, the hypocrisy becomes grotesque. Recognizing Palestine challenges that global injustice and forces the U.S. to reckon with its role.
The reported infiltration of Libyan extremist ranks by a Mossad agent posing as Abu Hafs, becoming a mosque imam and ISIS commander, is no mere sensationalism. Reports such as from nian Merkazi, AhlulBayt News, and others allege that Benjamin Ephraim infiltrated Benghazi and commanded 200 fighters. That act of deception does more than embarrass Israel’s secret services, it signals how deeply the projection of “terrorism” is weaponized to discredit and collapse indigenous resistance. The tactic is to conflate legitimate Palestinian struggle with extremist movements and make the oppressed appear as the oppressor. That distortion is at the heart of the propaganda systems defending occupation.
Israel and the U.S. operate a dual standard: they vilify any violence from resistance, while legitimizing state violence. In Gaza, they speak of self-defense when bombing civilian infrastructure; they decry rockets but approve full-scale air war. They label Palestinian leaders terrorists while shielding Israeli officials accused of settlement violence, settler terrorism, or extrajudicial killings. Recognition of Palestine would puncture that double standard and force consistency in international law.
Nigeria, for instance, has taken a vocal stance. At the 80th UNGA, President Tinubu (via Vice President Shettima) called for reforms, urged recognition, and affirmed that “the people of Palestine are not collateral damage.” The Nigerian statement reaffirmed Nigeria’s support for two-state coexistence, placed moral weight behind Gaza’s suffering, and demanded that no political or military objective justify slaughter of innocents. Nigeria has historically supported Palestine in multilateral fora, and many African states share in that legacy of anti-colonial solidarity.
At UNGA 80, Nigeria’s address included condemnation of violence in Gaza and the region, and unflinching support for the two-state solution. The address stated: “we say, without stuttering and without doubt, that a two-state solution remains the most dignified path to lasting peace for the people of Palestine.” It decried the moral injury of civilian bloodshed, urged proportionality in warfare, and pledged Nigeria’s moral support for global reform. Moreover, by demanding UN institutional reform and equitable representation, Nigeria aligns itself with the broader cause of global justice for marginalized peoples.
Several countries across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and even some European states have recognized Palestine. Their recognition is not mere symbolism but a political statement: that justice, not alliance, should guide foreign policy. These states provide Palestine with diplomatic backing, humanitarian support, and moral cover.
The African Union, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the Non-Aligned Movement, and others often issue resolutions condemning Israeli aggression and calling for Palestinian rights. Civil society, NGOs, churches, student unions, human rights groups mobilize protests, education campaigns, boycott movements (BDS), and international pressure.
It is not enough to simply speak; Nigeria and other sympathizing nations must convert their words into concerted diplomatic campaigns, coordination of recognition efforts, funding of Palestinian state-building, and capacity support. They should be fully prepared for Israeli and U.S. backlash; Recognition of Palestinians state will provoke diplomatic, political, and economic pushback. States must be ready for reprisals or pressure.
Without shrinking they must preach strongly against division among Palestinian leadership and probable betrayals. The goal must include the Implementation of a just border regime, settlement reversal, refugee right-of-return, security arrangements, transitional justice, all complexities must be addressed. And all thes nations must know that recognition is strongest when paired with treaties, accession to international institutions, and enforcement mechanisms.
It will represent a new chapter of justice. The world must choose: does it continue to side with power or with principle? Condemnation of Israeli aggression, U.S. shielding, and infiltration masquerades must be matched by action, recognition, accountability, solidarity. Palestine is not a bargaining chip or spoiler; it is a victim of imposed injustice. Recognition is not a reward to Hamas or extremists, it is a restoration of rights to a people systematically denied them.
Let this generation be the one to grant Palestine full statehood not out of charity, but out of justice. Let recognition break the chains of impunity, dismantle the masquerades, and build a future where Israelis and Palestinians live in security, dignity, and equality.
