Ayatollah Khamenei: Onoh warns Sheikh Gumi against radicalizing Nigeria youths, deepening religious cracks

Former South-East Spokesman to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Chairman, Forum of Former Members of Enugu State House of Assembly, Denge Josef Onoh has disagreed with Nigeria's Islamic cleric, Sheikh Gumi, who said that the late Iranian Supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stood for justice.

Gumi had in a statement, on Sunday, said that Khamenei would inspire change across the Muslim world, extolling Khamenei as a leader who remained steadfast in his beliefs, stood firmly for justice and did not retreat in the face of conflict 

Disagreeing with Gumi, Onoh said that the late Iranian leader was not a good leader worthy of emulation and cited instances of Khamenei's authoritarianism and sponsorship of mass killing both in Iran and in different parts of the world, particularly in the middle east.

Onoh maintained that Gumi's statements were not only factually false, but extremely reckless at the world's critical moment.

Onoh said that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei did not stand for justice as he presided over one of the most brutal authoritarian regimes of the time. 

Onoh said that he relied on verified list of atrocities Khamenei committed under his direct leadership, drawn from reports by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, the United Nations, and credible documentation.

He wondered why Gumi internationally overlooked the fact that Khamenei under his leadership supervised the Massacre of over 36,500 protesters in the December 2025–January 2026 nationwide uprising — Iran’s deadliest crackdown in history. 

He recalled that pthe Khamenei personally gave the order for lethal force, with IRGC commanders citing his January 9 speech as authorisation for a “victory through terror” campaign.

Onoh reminded Gumi of Khamenei's Brutal suppression of the 2022 Woman, Life, Freedom protests following Mahsa Amini’s death where security forces killed hundreds of unarmed citizens, including children, and arrested thousands.

Onoh said that Khamenei's leadership operated the World-leading execution machine based on verified facts — Iran under Khamenei consistently ranked among the top global executioners, hanging hundreds every year, including juveniles, political prisoners, and ethnic minorities, often after torture and sham trials in Revolutionary Courts.

Onoh further highlighted Khamenei's Crime against humanity of persecution against the Baha’i community — systematic denial of education, jobs, property, and freedom of worship, as documented in detail by Human Rights Watch.

Onoh also cited Global terrorism sponsorship which he said — billions funnelled to Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthis and Iraqi militias, fuelling wars that killed hundreds of thousands across Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, Gaza and Iraq.

"These are not Western propaganda. They are documented facts accepted by every major international human rights body. Sheikh Gumi ought to know that this is not the time for romantic martyrdom poetry. Iran has just lost its Supreme Leader in military strikes. Tehran has vowed revenge. The region is on edge. 

"In Nigeria - a multi-religious nation already battling banditry, kidnapping and lingering insurgency - statements that glorify a proven sponsor of terrorism and mass murderer risk doing two dangerous things - Radicalising impressionable young Muslims who may see Khamenei as a hero instead of a tyrant who oppressed his own people; Deepening religious fault lines at home when we should be promoting unity and peace."

Onoh said that Gumi's words carry weight in the North and advised him to use that weight for truth, not for importing foreign conflicts or turning a dictator into a saint. 

He said that the blood of Iranian women, children, Baha’is, Sunnis, Christians and dissidents cry out for justice — not celebration.

"Khamenei’s death will not 'fuel change in the Ummah' through vengeance. Real change comes when Muslims and Christians alike reject tyranny in all its forms — whether in Tehran, Kabul or anywhere else," Onoh said.

Onoh said that President Tinubu’s administration is actively strengthening Nigeria’s counterterrorism capabilities through a sovereignty, respecting partnership with the United States—including the newly inaugurated Nigeria-US Joint Working Group on Counterterrorism, the deployment of about 100 US military advisors for intelligence-sharing and training.

He stated that coordinated precision airstrikes on Boko Haram and ISWAP targets conducted at Nigeria’s request, and ongoing capacity-building programmes such as the Trans-Sahara Counterterrorism Partnership, IMET, and delivery of A-29 Super Tucano aircraft and AH-1Z helicopter are all aimed at delivering tangible results in Nigerian-led operations against terrorism, which is he noted that Gumi's statements aarre. deliberately intended to undermine.

"I urge you, in the name of the same God we both fear, to choose truth over propaganda. The blood of the innocent should shame us, not inspire us to more division," Onoh said.