‎Mahama Tells Ghida Fakhry Israel's War in Gaza Amounts to Genocide, Demands End to Global Double Standards ‎

President John Dramani Mahama has used a high-profile international platform to name Israel's conduct in Gaza a genocide, adding his voice to a growing chorus of African and global South leaders demanding consistency in how the international community applies its own laws.

Speaking to veteran broadcaster Ghida Fakhry on TRT World's Bigger Than Five programme, recorded on Friday, August 21, 2026, Mahama used the Gaza war as a case study for what he described as the selective application of international justice a theme that ran through an interview otherwise built around his vision for African economic self-reliance.

"We Continue to Live a Lie"
Pressed on the reparations debate for the transatlantic slave trade, Mahama widened the frame to global accountability more broadly, pointing to Gaza as evidence that international law is not applied evenly depending on who commits the violation.

He argued that inconsistency corrodes the credibility of the entire international system, warning that as long as justice is distorted depending on the identity of the actor involved, the world will continue operating on a falsehood rather than genuine legal principle.

The Ghanaian leader's comments align him with a wave of international voices including UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, whose October 2025 report characterized events in Gaza as a "collective crime" and accused dozens of UN member states of complicity who have used the genocide framing to press governments toward tougher diplomatic action.

Albanese's report noted that, more than two years into the war, only a handful of states Belize, Bolivia, Colombia and Nicaragua had gone as far as suspending diplomatic relations with Israel.

Part of a Broader "Accra Reset" Message
Mahama's Gaza remarks were embedded within a wider interview centred on what he termed an "Accra Reset" his call for Africa to renegotiate its economic relationship with the rest of the world.[3] He argued that the continent's leaders today face an economic liberation struggle distinct from the political independence battles fought by figures like Kwame Nkrumah, criticizing a global trading system in which African raw materials are priced and processed abroad before being sold back to the continent as finished goods.

He tied this economic argument to the same critique of double standards he applied to Gaza: that global institutions, from trade to international law, continue to be shaped by the interests of powerful states rather than principles applied equally to all.

Mahama also renewed his call for permanent African representation on the UN Security Council, arguing that a continent expected to abide by international rules should have a genuine seat at the table where those rules are made and enforced.

Consistent with Mahama's UNGA Position

The TRT interview is not the first time Mahama has used the genocide label for Gaza. He drew similar praise from Ghanaian analysts after telling the UN General Assembly in September 2025 that the world must stop looking away from what he called the crimes committed against Palestinians, a stance that put him at odds with opposition figures in Parliament who had cautioned against abandoning Ghana's traditionally neutral foreign policy posture.

By repeating the genocide characterisation nearly a year later on an internationally syndicated platform, Mahama signals that the position is not a one-off rhetorical flourish but a settled element of his foreign policy voice one he is willing to carry into forums well beyond Accra and New York.

Wo bo yɛ duru a, wo som Nyame.
Mustapha Bature Sallama
Medical/Science communicator, Private Investigator, Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Analysis,United States Institute of Peace (USIP), [email protected] +233555275880

References
Ghida Fakhry, "Bigger Than Five," TRT World http://www.ghidafakhry.com/bigger-than-five

Graphic Online, "Mahama calls for end to Africa's 'dependency syndrome', urges continent to take control of its resources," August 23, 2026 https://www.graphic.com.gh/news/politics/mahama-calls-for-end-to-africas-dependency-syndrome-urges-continent-to-take-control-of-its-resources.html

World News (TRT World syndication), "Ghana's president: We must end Africa's 'dependency syndrome' | Bigger Than Five," August 21, 2026 https://worldnews.whatfinger.com/2026/08/21/ghanas-president-we-must-end-africas-dependency-syndrome-bigger-than-five/

Citi Newsroom, "Mahama spoke the truth on Gaza genocide – Dr. Yao Gebe," September 25, 2025 https://citinewsroom.com/2025/09/mahama-spoke-the-truth-on-gaza-genocide-dr-yao-gebe/