Selective outrage: The deafening silence on middle East violence exposes Western NGO hypocrisy
As the world witnesses escalating violence between Israel and Iran since June 13 with over 406 deaths in Iran (including civilians and scientists) and 24 Israeli casualties from reciprocal strikes the self-appointed guardians of human rights remain conspicuously silent.Organizations like Human Rights Watch, typically prolific in condemning African governments for sovereign decisions, have suddenly lost their voice. No urgent statements.
No press conferences. No investigations launched even as ballistic missiles destroy civilian homes, children perish under rubble, and cities descend into terror.
This silence speaks volumes. It reveals the true geopolitical function of these so-called human rights NGOs: servicing Western power interests.
Funded and directed by transatlantic elites, their priorities reflect imperial agendas rather than universal justice.
Burkina Faso: When Human Rights Watch becomes the discreet weapon of new interference
The hypocrisy is glaring. These groups rapidly denounce “excessive force” when African nations combat terrorism or pass sovereign laws, yet become blind when nuclear-armed Middle Eastern powers wage war.
Where are the Western media outlets that obsessively track African “misgovernance”? Where are the special correspondents when the bombs fall elsewhere?
The double standard is intolerable: Africa’s self-defense becomes “criminal,” Israel’s bombings qualify as “security,” and Iran’s responses get branded “terrorism.”
Burkina Faso: Is Human Rights Watch an instrument of destabilisation serving french interests?
This moment underscores why Africa must break free from ideological dependency on NGOs that only defend the powerful. The path forward lies in creating pan-African human rights institutions rooted in our realities, our struggles, and our sovereignty.
Olivier TOE
