Above photo: Somaliland National Electoral Commission (SNEC) officials monitor the voting process at a polling station during the 2024 presidential election in Hargeisa on 13 November 2024. AFP/Luis Tato.
Qatar, Egypt, Palestine and African Union reject move.
As states warn against forcible Palestinian displacement to breakaway region.
NOTE: The Cradle reports: Somalia’s foreign minister, Ali Omar, has formally demanded that Israel reverse its recognition of Somaliland in comments to Al Jazeera on 27 December. Omar described Israel’s move as an act of “state aggression that will never be tolerated” and ”illegal interference” in Somalia’s internal affairs, stressing that Mogadishu would pursue diplomatic avenues to challenge it. Omar accused Israel of seeking recognition in part to advance plans to forcibly displace Palestinians from Gaza, a claim echoed by the Palestinian Authority (PA). This comes after months of reporting that Israel and the US had quietly engaged Somaliland as a potential destination for Palestinians forcibly displaced from Gaza – alongside Morocco, Puntland State of Somalia – in parallel with discussions tied to diplomatic recognition.
Israel‘s decision to become the first country to recognise the breakaway region of Somaliland has been condemned by a string of countries, while the US president said he was not ready to immediately follow in Israel’s footsteps.
Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, announced on Friday that he had signed a mutual declaration to recognise Somaliland as an independent and sovereign state.
Somaliland has been part of the unified Somali Republic since 1960, but declared its independence in 1991 and established a de facto state.
Although it has had unofficial diplomatic relations with several countries, its sovereignty had not been recognised by any permanent UN member state until this week.
US President Donald Trump told the New York Post that the US was looking into the issue.
“Everything is under study… we’ll study it. I study a lot of things and always make great decisions and they turn out to be correct,” Trump said.
“Does anyone know what Somaliland is, really?” he asked.
Asked about an alleged proposal by Somaliland to provide Washington with access to a strategic port on the Gulf of Aden, Trump dismissively replied: “Big deal.”
Saudi Arabia‘s foreign ministry affirmed its full support for the “unity and territorial integrity” of Somalia.
“The Kingdom expresses its rejection of the announcement of mutual recognition between the Israeli occupation authorities and the Somaliland region, considering it an action that entrenches unilateral secessionist measures that violate international law,” it stated.
It added that Riyadh rejected attempts to impose “parallel entities” that undermine Somalia’s unity, and said it supported the “legitimate institutions of the Somali state”.
Turkey‘s foreign ministry said the recognition was “yet another example of the Netanyahu government’s unlawful actions aimed at creating instability at both the regional and global levels”.
“This step by Israel, whose expansionist policies persist and which spares no effort to prevent the recognition of the State of Palestine, amounts to an explicit intervention in Somalia’s internal affairs,” it said.
On Saturday, Qatar‘s foreign ministry added its name to the list of countries to reject the recognition.
Doha said the development was a “dangerous precedent and unilateral action” which contravened the principles of international law and undermined the sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Somalia.
“It would be more appropriate for the Israeli occupation authorities to recognise the State of Palestine… rather than continuing to undermine international legitimacy and pursue reckless policies that contribute to heightened tensions and instability in the region.”
Sudan also expressed “strong condemnation of the Israeli occupier’s recognition of the Somali region of Somaliland, which violates international covenants”.
Fear Of Palestinian Displacement To Somaliland
Badr Abdelatty, Egypt‘s foreign minister, held a phone call on Friday with his counterparts in Somalia, Turkey and Djibouti, following the announcement.
Egypt’s foreign ministry said that the ministers of all four countries rejected and condemned Israel’s recognition of Somaliland.
It said that Cairo also rejected “any plans to displace the Palestinian people outside their land, which are rejected by the vast majority of the world’s countries”.
Earlier this year, several media outlets reported that the US and Israel had contacted Somaliland over the potential resettlement of forcibly displaced Palestinians from Gaza.
Somaliland’s foreign minister denied the reports, stating: “I haven’t received such a proposal, and there are no talks with anyone regarding Palestinians.”
The discussions risked tensions and anger among Somalilanders, analysts and locals previously told Middle East Eye.
It’s not yet clear if the mutual declaration between Somaliland and Israel this week involved any discussions about forcibly displacing Palestinians.
Ahmed Moalim Fiqi, Somalia’s defence minister, said that Mogadishu would “under no circumstances” accept Israel’s recognition of the northern region.
“Any discussion of forcibly displacing the Palestinians or relocating them to [Somali] territory is completely unacceptable [and] violates their fundamental right to live on their own land,” he added.
“Those involved, including the leaders of Somaliland, bear full responsibility for their heinous actions.”
The Palestinian Authority’s foreign ministry also condemned the development.
“This rejected recognition is considered part of Israel’s attempts, as a colonial power working to undermine international peace and security, particularly regional and Arab security, which insists on threatening the region,” it said.
It recalled that “Israel had previously used the name Somaliland as a destination for the deportation of members of our Palestinian people, especially from the Gaza Strip”, adding a warning against “anyone’s alignment with these rejected propositions”.
Hamas also criticised Somaliland’s government, stating that it had attempted to gain “false legitimacy” from what it described as an occupying, war-criminal state.
It rejected Israeli proposals to use Somaliland as a destination for forcibly displaced people from Gaza, and praised Arab and Islamic countries that condemned the move.
Netanyahu said the declaration on Friday was “in the spirit” of the Abraham Accords, the normalisation agreements signed between Israel and several Arab states in 2020.
He extended an invitation to Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, Somaliland’s president, for an official visit to Israel – an invite which Abdullahi said he would take up “as soon as possible”.
African Union Rejects Recognition
The chairperson of the African Union, a union of 55 member states within the continent, expressed “deep concern” over the development.
Mahmoud Ali Youssouf stressed the consistent position of the union over the “intangibility of borders inherited at independence, as affirmed by the 1964 decision of the Organization of African Unity”.
Cameron Hudson, a consultant on security and geopolitics in Africa, and former CIA analyst, told MEE that while a few countries may follow Israel’s lead, there would be pushback from African countries.
“Countries that don’t want to endanger their relationships with the African Union, other African countries or other Arab states rejecting this recognition, will be hesitant to advance any diplomatic relationship with Somaliland,” Hudson said.
“This is a very divisive and selfish move by the Israelis to advance their own interests, without providing broader recognition of the interests of other African or regional states who will see this as unsettling and even threatening.”
There were a few figures who welcomed the move.
Tarekegn Bululta Godana, an Ethiopian state minister for industry, wrote on X: “A notable diplomatic move that could shape the future trajectory of the Horn of Africa. Regional impacts will be important to follow. Good News for @Somaalilanders.”
In the UK, Nigel Farage, the right-wing leader of Reform – who has advocated for Somaliland for several years – welcomed the move. “Somaliland deserves this status,” he said on X.
The UAE – which has long maintained close relations with Somaliland and is thought to be a key advocate for Hargeisa’s recognition on the international stage – did not immediately react to Israel’s declaration.
MEE reported in October that Somaliland’s Berbera port was part of a network of bases along the Gulf of Aden built by the UAE.
Later on Saturday, a statement condemning the recognition was signed jointly by Jordan, Egypt, Algeria, Comoros, Djibouti, Gambia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, the Maldives, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Turkey, Yemen, and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
Notably, the foreign ministry of the UAE, which is part of the 57-member OIC, was not one of the individual signatories of the statement.
