The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has reacted to remarks made by an Israeli strategic advisor, Noga Arbel, who called for the freedom of Biafra while criticising the United Kingdom over its alleged support for what she described as “colonialism” in Nigeria, during a programme aired on Israel’s Channel 14 television station.
IPOB described the broadcast, which aired on August 14, as a formal Israeli media endorsement of Biafra’s independence and a demand that Britain cease its support for what the group termed “Nigerian colonialism.”
Speaking during the programme, Arbel, a former official of the Israeli Foreign Ministry, said, “The Igbo tribe of Biafra contacted the state of Israel lately and this is a very big and exciting event.”
She alleged that Biafra had remained under Nigerian control for decades “with the support of Britain due to their colonialism growth,” and called on Israel to press Britain to withdraw its alleged support for Nigeria over Biafra.
Reacting to the broadcast, IPOB’s Israel-based representative, Rachel Nwosu, described the development as “the single most significant breakthrough in Biafra’s diplomatic history,” saying in a statement, “Israel has spoken.
“The Jewish state, which knows the pain of subjugation, has now called on its government to stand with Biafra.”
She further described the Channel 14 platform as one of Israel’s most influential conservative broadcasters, alleging that the programme constituted “a clear and unequivocal call for the Israeli government to formally intervene” on the Biafra question.
The broadcast came weeks after an IPOB delegation, led by the group’s Directorate of State (DOS) and headed by Mazi Chris Nwaogu, was received by Israeli lawmakers in July 2026.
According to IPOB, the delegation met with Deputy Speaker of the Knesset, Nissim Vaturi, and Foreign Affairs and Security Committee member, Limor Son Har-Melech, an engagement the group described as a milestone in its diplomatic outreach.
IPOB alleged that the lawmakers expressed sympathy for its cause during the meeting and raised concerns about the continued detention of its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, who is serving a life sentence in Nigeria following his conviction on terrorism-related charges.
Reacting further to the broadcast, IPOB claimed that an independent Biafra would serve as “a secure homeland for persecuted Judeo-Christians across Nigeria,” describing the development as signalling what it called “the beginning of the end for Nigerian tyranny” in the region.
The group further alleged that the broadcast and the earlier Knesset meetings amounted to “a coordinated diplomatic offensive” targeting Nigeria’s territorial integrity.
(The Whistler)