…says Iran has, for several decades, sponsored and supported militant groups and terror organisations.
Abuja, Nigeria — The iNews Times reports that the Israeli Ambassador to Nigeria, Michael Freeman, has accused Iran of sponsoring extremist activities in Nigeria and other parts of the world, alleging that Tehran supports groups aimed at destabilising countries while pursuing hostility against Israel.
Freeman made the remarks on Friday during an interview on The Morning Show on Arise News, where he raised concerns over what he described as Iran extremist activities in Nigeria and other regions.
The envoy claimed that Iran is the only country within the United Nations that openly expresses a desire to destroy another sovereign state, referring to repeated threats against Israel.
According to him, the Iranian government has, for several decades, supported militant groups and terror organisations around the world as part of efforts to achieve that objective.
Freeman alleged that Iran has backed groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah, adding that Tehran was also behind the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel carried out by Hamas against Israel.
He further claimed that Iranian activities aimed at spreading instability have been observed across several regions, including Europe, Australia, and parts of Africa.
Speaking specifically about Nigeria, the Israeli ambassador alleged that the Islamic Movement of Nigeria receives backing from the Iranian government.
According to Freeman, statements of support from Iran’s leadership, including social media posts by Ali Khamenei, have openly indicated such ties.
He said:
“The issue here is about Iran. Iran is the only country in the world, in the United Nations, that expressly desires to wipe another country off the face of the earth. Iran has stated its policy is to destroy Israel.
“Over 47 years, we have seen them take actions toward that objective. We’ve seen them sponsor terror organisations. They were behind the October 7 massacre by Hamas. We’ve seen them sponsoring Hezbollah. We’ve seen them acting in Europe, Australia, and Nigeria.
“We’ve seen these people acting across the world to spread disturbance in pursuit of their aim of destroying Israel. Israel will not allow another country to have nuclear weapons when they have expressly stated those weapons would be used to destroy Israel.”
Freeman further alleged that Iranian influence extends to groups within Nigeria.
“It is well documented. We know that certain movements, for example the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, are sponsored and backed by the Iranian regime.
“This is not just me saying it; we have seen it documented by the Iranian regime itself. The Supreme Leader posted on X his support and backing. That is very open.
“There are also other areas where Iran is working toward destabilising not only Nigeria but the wider West African region.”
