Banner Online News

By Etim Etim

The Israeli prime minister is unarguably the world’s most detested leader today, especially in the Middle East and Arab world, but he earns my respect for resolutely defending his nation against brutal and vile terrorists and taking steps to protect his people against annihilation.

Benjamin Netanyahu is my idea of a strong and patriotic leader. He is firm, decisive and single minded in the pursuit of Hamas and Hezbollah, two of the world’s most brutal terror groups that had vowed to wipe Israel off the earth. Netanyahu is not afraid to go against popular opinions, even at the UN, and has, in several occasions, ignored suggestions from the White House and the Pentagon, to slow down. But for him, the survival of the only Jewish State, nestled in the most dangerous neighborhood in the world and surrounded by the vilest enemies, is the single most important thing, and for that, I admire the prime minister a lot.

Netanyahu exemplifies what I have been looking for in Nigerian leaders: fearlessness; courage; patriotism and assertiveness. For decades, Nigeria has been steadily destroyed by terrorists from outside and inside the country. Thousands of Nigerians in the Middle Belt; North East and North West have either been murdered, maimed or driven away from their ancestral land by these foreign terrorists and their Nigerian collaborators.

Due to these persistent attacks, peasants and small scale farmers, the nation’s major food producers, no longer have access to their farms. They have lost their sources of income, and that means food production has plummeted significantly; with the nation gripped by unprecedentedly high levels of food inflation. Yet no Nigerian leader, from Goodluck Jonathan to Bola Tinubu, has been able to defeat these extremists. Of the three, Muhammadu Buhari appeared least interested in dealing with the problem. He was cold, aloof and detached from the senseless killings of Nigerians, especially the people of Benue and Plateau States, who were frequent victims of these attacks. More Nigerians were killed under his watch than at any other peace time in our history. He was more interested in appeasing the murderers. As I write, thousands of Nigerians are still living in IDPs in states like Adamawa; Borno; Niger; Katsina; Zamfara and other parts of Northern Nigeria, having been sacked from their homes by terrorists. Many believe that Buhari was actually in support of these carnages.

In August, there were major terrorist attacks in a small town in Burkina Faso in which over 600 people were murdered. Militants from Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam (JNIM), an al Qaeda affiliate based in Mali and active in Burkina Faso, swept into the town on motor cycles and shot down the villagers, most of whom were women and children. Reports say the militants are marching southwards from the Sahel and are threatening to invade West African countries, beginning from Benin, Nigeria’s western neighbour. The terrorists are having a field day terrorizing the Sahel region, especially since the departure of French and US forces that were holding them in check. Neither AU nor ECOWAS has made a statement; and African leaders are behaving as if nothing happened. What a shame!

But look at how Netanyahu has ruthlessly dealt with Hamas and Hezbolla since October last year. Under him, the Israeli government and security forces have deployed the most sophisticated intelligence to take out the leaders of these two evil groups. The Israeli army, known as Israeli Defence Force (IDF), has shown gallantry, bravery and valor in taking the fight to Hamas in Gaza and Hezbolla in Lebanon. On October 18, Hamas leader, Yahaya Sinwar, the architect of the October 7, 2023 attacks in Israel, was killed by Israel in Gaza. Before Sinwar, Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas’ political leader was killed in a guest house in Teheran on July 31, 2024. His elimination by Israel marked a turning point in the war and sent out a strong signal that Israel meant business.

The killing of Hassan Nasrallah, the fearful and influential Hezbollah leader, on September 27, by an Israeli strike, sent shockwaves across the Middle East; so much so that Iranian President, Masoud Pezeshkian, had to go into hiding somewhere in Teheran! Other Hezbollah leaders like Fuad Shukr; Sami Taleb Abdallah and commanders like Mohammed Deif; and Saleh-al Aroura, among many others, have also been eliminated by Israeli strikes. As I write, Israel is extending its assaults to financial institutions that supports Hezbollah. Over 15 bank branches that provide financial services to this group in Lebanon have been destroyed, and Israel is boasting that the bombardments will continue until Hezbollah collapses. No doubt, both Hamas and Hezbollah have suffered debilitating attacks in the last one year, and they will never be the same. The greatest duty of a government is to protect its citizens from danger and harm, and provide for their welfare and wellbeing. Any government that fails in this sacred duty is not worth being in office. Mind you, Israel is a very tiny country (22, 145 square km) – slightly bigger than Cross River State (20, 156 sq.km) – with a population of only 9.4 million people. I salute this tiny Jewish State and I commend its Prime Minister for doing what every responsible leader should do!

Let me conclude with two things. First, I would be remiss in my duty as a patriotic Nigerian if I fail to acknowledge the sacrifices of our men and women in uniform who have fought hard in the last 15 years to keep us safe and protect our nation. In spite of the several inadequacies of our security services, the Nigerian army has fought the terrorists bravely and I am proud of their services and sacrifices. Second, I sympathize with the families of ordinary, innocent people who have been killed or impacted by wars in Gaza and Lebanon. I ask the IDF to take adequate steps to minimize civilian casualties and sufferings.