It rarely happens, but Dagestan and Ireland are finally on the same page. Well, by Dagestan, I mean Khabib Nurmagomedov. The former undefeated UFC lightweight champion has often expressed his concern regarding the conflicts in Palestine. But now things seem to have begun to change. It’s nothing but a sliver of hope for the shimmering brown and hazel eyes still panicking in the jam-packed refugee centers.

Earlier in 2024, South Africa accused Israel of genocide for attacking Palestine, at the International Court of Justice. While Israel claimed that these accusations were baseless, almost the entire world stood against the country. Now, Ireland has also joined the debate and stood beside South Africa, months after announcing plans to intervene in the case. On 7th January, the court stated, “Ireland, invoking Article 63 of the Statute of the Court, filed in the registry of the Court a declaration of intervention in the case concerning Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip.”

This was one of the acts by the Irish government that the former Dagestani champion greatly appreciated. He took to Instagram and shared the news on his IG story. And to show his support, ‘The Eagle’ dropped a clapping emoji in the caption. Of course, this wasn’t the first time Nurmagomedov expressed his worries regarding the troubling situation in Palestine. On the 5th of January, the former champ shared yet another post on his IG stories, where a lawyer named Khaled Beydoun claimed, “Dublin, Ireland stands with Gaza.” Once again, Nurmagomedov showed his support with a single applause emoji in the caption. 

Being close friends of the Palestinian welterweight champion, Belal Muhammad, the Dagestani team couldn’t avert their eyes from the terrible pain that the people in Gaza have had to endure. This even pushed Islam Makhachev and Umar Nurmagomedov to back out from celebrating their victories. Let’s see what the Dagestani stars had to say about it. 

Khabib Nurmagomedov and his team stand in support of Gaza

The Dagestani team’s stance regarding the situation in Gaza was prominent when the rising bantamweight star, Umar Nurmagomedov, refused to celebrate his UFC Vegas 87 win. During the post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier, the #2 bantamweight prospect said, “I’m going to support and say support words for people in Gaza. They don’t have any food, they don’t have water, medical, anything they try to find some cats to eat, do, can you imagine? And I hope this world going to wake up and I think they have some minimum humanity for helping these guys.”

Even the lightweight champion was of a similar opinion. Following the UFC 294 win, Makhachev announced, “I’m not celebrating the win today, because crazy things are happening around the world. Palestine we stand up with you. Stop this!” Muhammad and Israel Adesanya also showered some prayers for the lives lost in Gaza after the conflict started.

‘The Eagle’ also had a chance to talk to the President-elect, Donald Trump about the war. During UFC 302, he had a brief conversation with the 78-year-old and asked him if he could do anything about the situation in Palestine. Well, this concern propelled Nurmagomedov’s image higher up in Trump’s perspective. 

But what do you think of Ireland joining hands with South Africa against Israel? Do you think this would prevent further tragedy in Gaza? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.