Israel Urges Ghana to Join International Pressure on Iran as Gaza Dispute Persists

Israel’s ambassador to Ghana has called on Accra to join international pressure on Iran, while defending Israel’s military campaign in Gaza and insisting that disagreements over the war have not damaged relations between Ghana and Israel.

Israel’s Ambassador to Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone, Roey Gilad, has urged Ghana to support international efforts aimed at pressuring Iran over what Israel describes as Tehran’s destabilising activities across the Middle East.

Speaking at a press conference at the Israeli Embassy in Accra on Wednesday, August 26, Gilad said Ghana’s diplomatic standing in Africa made its voice particularly important.

“Ghana needs to be part of the international pressure to tell Iran to hold its horses and stop interfering in Middle East issues and stop destabilising the Middle East,” he said.

The ambassador argued that Ghana, which has maintained diplomatic relations with Israel since the early years of independence, could play a role in broader international efforts aimed at containing Iranian influence in the region.

Iran has long supported armed groups and political movements across the Middle East, including Hezbollah in Lebanon and Palestinian factions such as Hamas. Tehran says its alliances form part of a regional strategy of resistance against Israel and Western influence, while Israel views the network as a major security threat.

Ambassador rejects genocide characterisation

Gilad also addressed criticism of Israel’s military operations in Gaza, including comments by Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama condemning Israel’s conduct of the war.

The ambassador rejected the characterisation of Israel’s actions as genocide, arguing that Israel was conducting a defensive military campaign following the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023.

“The intention of Israel was not to attack civilians; they were collateral damage. Without an element of intention, it is not a genocide; it was a defence operation,” Gilad said.

The question of whether Israel’s conduct in Gaza constitutes genocide remains the subject of proceedings before the International Court of Justice in a case brought by South Africa. The court has issued provisional measures during the proceedings but has not delivered a final judgment on whether genocide has occurred.

Gilad said disagreements between Ghana and Israel over Gaza should not be interpreted as a breakdown in bilateral relations.

“Because we have any disagreement does not mean we have bad relations with Ghana. We still see Ghana as an extremely important partner of Israel,” he said.

Ghana reopens embassy in Israel

According to the ambassador, Ghana reopened its embassy in Tel Aviv this week after it had been closed for about six months because of the conflict in the Middle East.

Gilad presented the reopening as evidence that relations between the two countries remained strong despite their differing positions on Gaza.

Ghana and Israel have maintained diplomatic and economic ties spanning agriculture, technology, education, security and development cooperation.

October 7 changed Israeli attitudes

Gilad also said the October 7 attacks had dramatically changed Israeli public attitudes towards the Palestinians and the possibility of establishing two states.

More than 1,200 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led assault, according to Israeli authorities, while hundreds were taken hostage.

The ambassador said the attacks had created a deep trust deficit within Israeli society.

“Israelis have been traumatised since the October 7 massacre of over 1,200 Israelis and the level of trust for Palestinians has gone down,” he said.

He argued that support for a two-state solution had been significantly weakened by the attacks and that rebuilding trust would be necessary before meaningful political negotiations could advance.

Israel sets conditions for withdrawal

Gilad said Israel did not intend to permanently occupy Gaza but maintained that a full withdrawal would depend on the dismantling of Hamas’s military capability.

He said Israel “will not push back to the international border unless Hamas decommissions”.

Israel has repeatedly argued that any post-war arrangement must prevent Hamas and other Iran-aligned armed groups from posing another military threat.

The future governance of Gaza and the conditions under which Israeli forces would withdraw remain among the central unresolved questions of the conflict.

Ambassador attacks ICC warrant

Gilad also criticised the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant in November 2024 over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity connected to the Gaza conflict.

Gilad described the decision as wrong and criticised the court for targeting Israel’s elected leadership.

The ICC says the warrant against Netanyahu concerns allegations including the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare as well as crimes against humanity. Netanyahu and the Israeli government have rejected the allegations and challenged the court’s jurisdiction.

Gilad also acknowledged that Israel’s broader campaign against Iran had not achieved all of its objectives but expressed optimism that economic pressure, particularly measures supported by the United States, could weaken Tehran’s regional influence.

His comments highlight an increasingly complicated diplomatic position for Ghana as it seeks to maintain longstanding relations with Israel while also publicly criticising the humanitarian consequences of the Gaza war.

For Accra, the question is no longer simply where Ghana stands on Gaza. Israel is now asking Ghana to take a more explicit position in the wider confrontation between Israel and Iran.