By: Manoah Kikekon
The Muslim Public Affairs Centre (MPAC) Nigeria has strongly criticized the Federal Government for omitting any reference to Palestine in its official address at the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
In a statement signed by its Executive Chairman, Disu Kamor, the advocacy group expressed disappointment that while Nigeria's 24-paragraph address touched heavily on global issues including UN Security Council reforms, climate finance, artificial intelligence, and counter-terrorism in the Sahel it completely sidelined the ongoing crisis in Gaza and the Palestinian struggle.
MPAC highlighted that this year's silence marks a sharp contrast to Nigeria's address at the 80th UN General Assembly, where the country explicitly condemned violence against civilians in Gaza and threw its weight behind a two-state solution.
“Gaza not mentioned. The Palestinian people not mentioned. The two-state solution – the very phrase Nigeria used ‘without stuttering and without doubt’ twelve months ago – not mentioned once,” the group stated.
The organization linked the sudden omission to strengthening diplomatic and security alignments between Abuja and Tel Aviv since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assumed office in May 2023.
MPAC pointed to several diplomatic milestones, including, The signing of a bilateral Security Cooperation Agreement between Nigeria and Israel in August 2025. Expanding discussions surrounding intelligence sharing, surveillance tech acquisition, and counter-terrorism training.
Proposed frameworks for a Nigeria-Israel Joint Commission spanning health, technology, and economic cooperation. Given these developments, the Islamic body questioned whether Nigeria's diplomatic silence on the Palestinian issue was a direct consequence of its deepening strategic partnership with Israel.
Calling on the Federal Government to clear the air, MPAC insisted that if Nigeria’s foreign policy stance on the Middle East conflict has indeed shifted, citizens deserve a transparent explanation.
The group further urged the Nigerian government to take bolder steps by publicly backing the Palestinian people, supporting South Africa's ongoing genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and making all bilateral security pacts conditional upon international human rights accountability.
“Palestine has not disappeared. Gaza has not disappeared. The suffering has not disappeared,” MPAC concluded.