Israel - Iran Conflict:Religion Has Blinded Many Nigerians Beyond Reason
By: ' ```Biodun Ogundiran``` .
One of the most dangerous cancers eating deep into Nigerian society today is religious bigotry. We have sadly reduced every global event into a matter of religious loyalty, even when facts are screaming otherwise.
Since this recent Israel -Iran crises started, I have been amused with the way Nigerians are reacting each time they hear of bomb landing on Israel or Iran. You will see every Akeem, Musibau, Nuru, Abdul'anything', Taofeek etc passionately throwing their weight behind Iran and almost jubilating when Isreal was hit, just as James, Mathew, Cornelius, Ephraim, Mathias, Peter etc blindly align with Israel and show happiness when Iran was hit by Israel . But the irony is glaring: neither Iran nor Israel is what many Nigerians ignorantly think they are.
Let us start with Iran. Iran is not even an Arab country. It is predominantly Persian in ethnicity, and the major language spoken there is Persian (Farsi), not Arabic. Many Nigerians assume they are Arabs just because they are Muslims, but that's not the case. Even more, Iran leads the Shia Islamic sect, which is often at odds with Sunni Islam — the dominant version practised in countries like Saudi Arabia. The kind of Islam most Nigerian Muslims practice is Sunni. So, before shouting 'Muslim brotherhood' for Iran, understand that doctrinally, many Iranian Muslims don’t share your exact beliefs. Most Muslims in Nigeria align with Saudi Arabia.
Now let’s look at Israel. Contrary to popular belief among many Christians in Nigeria, Israel is not a Christian nation. It is predominantly Jewish, and Jews practice Judaism — not Christianity. In fact, Christianity and Islam are both minority religions in Israel, and interestingly, Muslims outnumber Christians there. Shocking? It gets even more interesting: Iran, a so-called 'Muslim country,' actually has more Christians than Israel. Yes, you read that right.
Yet, what do we often see? Many Christians support Israel blindly because Israel is in the Bible or because of a mistaken belief that it’s a Christian country. On the other hand, many Muslims support Iran out of assumed religious solidarity, thinking Iran's fight is theirs to defend — without truly understanding the complexities of the Middle East or the doctrinal divides within Islam itself. Very soon, some crop of almanjiris would start demonstration in the North in solidarity with Iran. Ignoramus.
To make matters worse, Arabs — not Jews or Christians — make up a significant percentage of Israel’s population. There are more Arabs in Israel than there are Christians. And if you think evangelism is easy in the so-called Holy Land, think again. Preaching Christianity in modern-day England is far easier than doing the same in Israel. Isreal only knew Jesus as a prophet who came to impersonate the Messiah they were expecting, and they killed him for that. Lobatan.
But none of these realities seem to matter to the average Nigerian who has traded critical thinking for religious sentiment. Many have chosen to view complex geopolitical conflicts purely through the lens of their religion. They don’t care who is right or wrong, who is breaking international laws, or who is acting justly. They simply pick a side based on religious identity.
This kind of thinking is not only shallow, it is also dangerous. It blinds people to the truth and removes the most important thing that makes us human — empathy. Supporting any side in a conflict should never be about which side shares your religion but about who upholds justice, fairness, and respect for human life.
If the only reason you support Israel is because it is mentioned in the Bible, or because you think it's a Christian country, then you are not supporting based on truth — you are simply a religious bigot. If the only reason you support Iran is because they are Muslims or because they stand against the West, yet you don't understand their ideology or internal oppression, then your support is based on ignorance, not justice.
The Middle East crisis is complex, rooted in history, politics, territorial disputes, and power struggles—not in any way near religion. Nigerians must educate themselves beyond emotional religious biases before picking sides in a conflict they barely understand. True humanity demands that we stand for what is right, not just what aligns with our faith. Let’s stop reducing global issues to simplistic religious divisions. Knowledge, not sentiment, should guide our perspectives.
Catherine Perez-Shakdam, a French girl, claimed to be a Muslim, openly converted to Shiism, wrote in praise of the revolution, and defended the rule of the jurist, until her articles appeared on the website of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei himself.
But behind the masks... Mossad's eyes were watching from within. Catherine did not enter Iran as a traditional spy, but rather as a writer, journalist, and thinker.
She got close to politicians, sat with the Revolutionary Guard, met with Ebrahim Raisi, and visited sensitive areas under the cover of "journalistic research."
But the most dangerous thing was in the women's salons... She got close to the wives of officials, military personnel, and scholars, built deep relationships with them, and made them trust her as if she were one of them. They spoke with her freely about their husbands, their places of residence, their travel schedules, their movements, and the details of their daily lives.
Every word was recorded, every piece of information was transmitted. With this information, some of their locations were pinpointed, and assassinations took place one after another... in the minds of women, and with innocent words that she had no idea would lead to the murder of their husbands.
When suspicion began to circulate around her, she left Iran, before the doors were closed. But she had completed her mission with complete success, and contributed to dealing painful blows to Iran.
🟡 @NEWWORLDORDYR
For balance of narratives:
Key Statements from Senior IRGC Official Mohsen Rezaei
➡️On Punishing Israel & Strategic Deterrence:
“We have punished the Israelis severely until today, but it is not enough. Our punishment must serve as insurance for the future so that the enemy does not dare repeat its actions.”
“The Zionist regime aimed to assassinate our senior commanders to spark internal chaos. That failed within the first 48 hours. Then they tried to turn Iran into Syria—now, it is they who have become Syria.”
“The Iranian nation should not worry about the end of this war. Israel must be punished so harshly that it never again considers creating insecurity in Iran.”
➡️On Military Strategy & Capabilities:
“We’ve used less than 30% of our military capabilities. The gradual escalation is deliberate—partly to allow civilians to evacuate.”
“We’ve not yet employed our land, sea, oil, or Strait of Hormuz capabilities, nor have we activated our allies abroad. They have offered to join the fight, but we’ve told them it’s not needed—yet.”
“In the past 48 hours, we used a new tactic: combining Fattah and Sejjil missiles. Together, they seriously disrupted the enemy’s defense systems.”
“After our strategic analysis in February–March confirmed war was inevitable, we boosted our missile and cyber capabilities fivefold within months.”
➡️On Nuclear Sites & Infrastructure:
“Israel targeted Natanz, Isfahan, Khandab, and Arak. But those sites had already been evacuated. All enriched materials have been secured in safe locations.”
“Our nuclear scientists and production facilities are intact. These attacks achieved nothing of substance.”
“The US might be able to damage the Fordow facility, but it can’t do more to strengthen Israel’s defenses than it already is.”
➡️On Ceasefire & U.S. Involvement:
“Any ceasefire now will only revive the enemy. We must not allow the Zionist regime to recover while it is weak.”
“Netanyahu has begged the U.S.: either help me or declare a ceasefire.”
➡️On Protecting Civilians & Targeting Strategy:
“We’ve warned settlers to evacuate areas near government, military, and intelligence sites in the occupied territories. Our intent is not to harm civilians.”
“They cannot build command centers next to hospitals and fire at us—then expect us not to respond.”
With the nuclear facilities in Iran completely obliterated, the Gulf Arab States and Yemen can now sleep with both eyes closed. 💪🏾
TRUMP'S SPEECH
Here's the full text of US President Donald Trump’s speech on US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities on June 22, 2024.
I particularly like how he brags with the US military!✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾
Thank you very much.
A short time ago, the US military carried out massive, precision strikes on the three key nuclear facilities in the Iranian regime. Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan. Everybody heard those names for years as they built this horribly destructive enterprise.
Our objective was the destruction of Iran’s nuclear enrichment capacity and a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world’s number one state sponsor of terror.
Tonight, I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success. Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated. Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If they do not. Future attacks would be far greater and a lot easier.
For 40 years, Iran has been saying. Death to America, death to Israel. They have been killing our people, blowing off their arms, blowing off their legs, with roadside bombs. That was their specialty. We lost over 1,000 people and hundreds of thousands throughout the Middle East, and around the world have died as a direct result of their hate in particular. So many were killed by their general, Qassim Soleimani. I decided a long time ago that I would not let this happen. It will not continue.
I want to thank and congratulate Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu. We worked as a team like perhaps no team has ever worked before, and we’ve gone a long way to erasing this horrible threat to Israel. I want to thank the Israeli military for the wonderful job they’ve done. And most importantly, I want to congratulate the great American patriots who flew those magnificent machines tonight, and all of the United States military on an operation the likes of which the world has not seen in many, many decades.
Hopefully, we will no longer need their services in this capacity. I hope that’s so. I also want to congratulate the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan ‘Razin’ Caine, spectacular general, and all of the brilliant military minds involved in this attack.
With all of that being said, this cannot continue. There will be either peace, or there will be tragedy for Iran, far greater than we have witnessed over the last eight days. Remember, there are many targets left. Tonight’s was the most difficult of them all, by far, and perhaps the most lethal. But if peace does not come quickly, we will go after those other targets with precision, speed and skill. Most of them can be taken out in a matter of minutes. There’s no military in the world that could have done what we did tonight. Not even close. There has never been a military that could do what took place just a little while ago.
Tomorrow, General Caine, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth will have a press conference at 8 a.m. at the Pentagon. And I want to just thank everybody. And, in particular, God. I want to just say, we love you, God, and we love our great military. Protect them. God bless the Middle East. God bless Israel and God bless America. Thank you very much. Thank you.
***As transcribed by the Associated Press.
My brother, Iran has more than 400 kg of enriched uranium. If the enriched uranium was blown up last night, there will be massive radiation across Iran, Saudi Arabia and Iraq
Anyone who believes that Iran knowledge, knowledge how, and uranium materials were all wiped out last night is dreaming. What happened was for show and drama. And that’s why USA is still asking for negotiations. Without agreement of Iran on inspections of the materials, this conflict is not ending tomorrow. The bombing may delay the inevitable. The reality is that Iran is close to their objectives and will not give it up easily, not after the USA/Israel bombings
Correct.Iranian threat is still real despite the strikes by the trumps military.The battle is not ordinarily between Israel and Iran but between the eastern block led by Russia and China and the western block led by the United States and Britain.The eastern block knows that these known nuclear sites will take a hit.Sensitive materials were removed and hidden in sites that Israel and America have not identified yet.Only real negotiations will stop Iran from acquiring nuclear capacity.The west led by America know this and will keep up the pressure using both kinetic and non kinetic.
INTELLIGENCE REPORT – 22 JUNE 2025
Subject: U.S. Strikes on Iran – Strategic Pause
At 02:30 IRST (0000hr WAT), U.S. bombers struck Iran’s Fordo, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear sites, targeting key uranium enrichment infrastructure. President Trump confirmed all aircraft exited Iranian airspace safely and announced no further military action "for now," signaling a strategic pause. Iran had reportedly evacuated the sites in advance. Tehran warns of retaliation, while U.S. assets in the region remain on high alert. The operation, coordinated with Israel, aims to delay Iran’s nuclear capabilities without entering prolonged conflict. Regional escalation remains likely via proxy retaliation, cyberattacks, or missile threats. Diplomatic options remain uncertain amid rising tensions.
Fordow was the only one hit by bombers. The other two were struck by cruise missiles launched from submarines in international waters hundreds of miles away.
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