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KAMPALA— On June 24, 2025, President Yoweri Museveni, who also serves as Chairperson of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), publicly addressed the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict, attributing the crisis to a series of historical missteps by global powers.

In a statement shared on his official X (formerly Twitter) account, President Museveni responded to concerns raised by the Iranian Ambassador to Uganda about NAM’s silence on the Middle East crisis. He explained that Uganda had not yet publicly stated its long-held views but emphasized that the roots of the conflict trace back to actions by Western imperialists, Romans, Iranians, Israelis, and British colonial authorities.

Museveni challenged Iran’s claim that Israel is an illegitimate “transplant” in the Middle East, arguing that biblical history confirms Israel’s ancient connection to the region. He criticized the British proposal in 1924 to resettle Jews in Uganda, calling it “absurd,” and supported the United Nations’ decision to partition Palestine between two peoples as a historically justified solution.

“It has been wrong for some Arabs and Iranian Islamists to reject that historical arrangement,” Museveni stated.

Turning to Israel, he questioned the country’s refusal to embrace a two-state solution. He recounted conversations with Mzee Benzion Netanyahu—father of current Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—where he inquired about the ancient tribes like the Jebusites and the Philistines of Gaza, mentioned in the Bible.

“Even if the ancient tribes perished, many people migrated to the area after the Jewish diaspora in AD 70. You cannot deny their presence or legitimacy,” Museveni argued, drawing comparisons to European migrations to the Americas, Australia, and South Africa in the last 400 years.

He likened the Israeli stance to Idi Amin’s logic when the former Ugandan dictator expelled the Indian community, falsely claiming they didn’t belong in Uganda—an argument Museveni firmly rejects.

The President further condemned Western interference in Iran, particularly the 1953 CIA-led coup that ousted Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh, claiming it was driven by greed for Iranian oil. He asserted that this interference fueled widespread resentment, ultimately empowering clerics with misguided ideologies.

“It’s ironic,” Museveni noted, “that I, Yoweri Museveni from the Great Lakes of Africa, seem to know more about Persian history than some Iranians themselves. Even the Bible speaks repeatedly of the ‘Persians and Medians,’ whose laws do not change.”

President Museveni’s message called for historical clarity, mutual recognition, and balanced diplomacy in resolving the deep-rooted tensions in the Middle East.