The countries of eastern Africa have sided with the Persian Gulf monarchies attacked by Iran, and South Africa and Senegal have criticized the US attacks, citing international law. Nigeria, on the other hand, fears that it is next in line and will suffer the fate of Iran.
The war in the Persian Gulf, which has been ongoing since Saturday, is testing African unity. The African Union, calling “for restraint, urgent de-escalation and sustained dialogue,” echoed the views of most African countries, but some governments openly condemned Iran, especially those with strong ties to Red Sea ports and remittances from relatives working in Gulf countries.
The entire eastern region of the continent, led by Kenya and Somalia, quickly condemned Iran for attacks on the United Arab Emirates (several dozen Africans were injured by Iranian shelling on Sunday), Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, not to mention the role of the United States in the conflict.
When listing the countries with which it shows solidarity, Somalia omitted the UAE, with which it has had tense relations since Israel recognized Somaliland's independence, which Mogadishu said was done with the strong support of Doha.
The Sudanese authorities also, while condemning Iranian attacks on Middle Eastern countries in a diplomatic statement, remained silent about the United Arab Emirates, which they repeatedly described as an “enemy state”, accusing it of fueling the ongoing civil war in the country.
The Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed, went much further, who in a conversation with the Crown Prince of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Khalid al-Hamad al-Sabah, stated that Iran had committed a “cruel attack on the sovereignty of Kuwait”, where millions of his compatriots work and send money to their African relatives every week.
In the west of the continent, always pro-American Liberia openly criticized Iran, and Ghana, worried about the thousands of its citizens stuck in the Middle East, called for de-escalation and restraint, as did Gambia and Nigeria, for which the Gulf states are very important trading partners.
When the government in Abuja called for compliance with international law, without condemning either Iran or the US-Israel coalition, thousands of Shiites organized anti-American protests in the north of the country, and a prominent foreign policy expert, prof. Femi Otubanjo, warned on public television that Nigeria may face military pressure from the United States on its own in the future, just like Iran is currently doing.
Other countries, traditionally pro-Russian, i.e. also pro-Iranian and anti-Western, warned against the West's military abuses. The President of the Republic of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, who is in conflict with Washington, recalled that Article 51 of the United Nations Charter allows self-defense only if the country has been the victim of an armed attack. South Africa is a member of the BRICS economic group, which includes Russia, China, Brazil, India and Iran. Less diplomatic than his president was the leader of the left-wing opposition, Julius Malema, who shouted that Iran had every right to defend itself.
Senegal's Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko was equally determined, saying: “The country, without a resolution and mandate from the United Nations, has decided to attack another country, to assassinate its leaders. The entire balance of the world that has been built over the last 50 years is at risk.”
Africans' feelings were summed up by the Guinean news site LeDjely: “Inwardly, many Africans feel a sense of frustration and anger over the US-Israeli coalition's bombing of Iran. Despite all the accusations that mule-ruled Tehran has deserved, Africa sympathizes with Iran in silence.”
From Monrovia Tadeusz Brzozowski (PAP)
tebe/mal/
