Residents wave Somaliland flags as they gather to celebrate Israel's announcement in downtown Hargeisa on Wednesday.FARHAN ALELI/AFP/Getty Images
Israel’s decision to give diplomatic recognition to the breakaway region of Somaliland has sparked anger across much of Africa and the Arab world, with some leaders predicting it could pave the way for the deportation of Gaza Palestinians to the secessionist state.
Somaliland, which declared independence from Somalia in 1991, has been fighting for global recognition for more than three decades. On Friday, when Israel became the first country to support Somaliland’s independence, thousands of the region’s people celebrated with fireworks and dancing in the streets. The flag-waving celebrations continued on Sunday at a stadium in the capital, Hargeisa.
For Israel, the move has strategic value, expanding its diplomatic partners in the Muslim world and giving it a potential foothold near the entrance to the Red Sea. But dozens of governments and regional blocs swiftly protested the Israeli announcement, calling it a dangerous violation of international law.
The United Nations Security Council has called an emergency session on Monday afternoon to discuss the Israeli move and its ramifications.
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A statement issued on Saturday by 21 countries, mostly in Africa and the Middle East, said there was a “potential link” between the recognition agreement and a reported Israeli plan to relocate Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to the Horn of Africa region. Any attempt to do this would be “unequivocally rejected,” the countries said.
Unnamed officials in Israel and the United States, quoted by Associated Press last March, said their governments had reached out to three African governments – including that of Somaliland – to discuss the possibility of using their territories to resettle Palestinians uprooted from Gaza.
On the weekend, Somaliland officials said the diplomatic recognition agreement with Israel had no connection to Palestinian issues.
Israeli leaders did not comment publicly on whether they want to resettle Palestinians in Somaliland but focused on other issues. A statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Israel would expand its relations with Somaliland by co-operating in the fields of agriculture, health, technology and the economy.
Several Muslim countries that have normalized relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords – including Morocco, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates – were not among the 21 countries that signed the joint statement criticizing the Israeli decision. Among those that signed the statement were Turkey, Nigeria, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Iran and Iraq.
The UAE, however, reportedly chaired an Arab League meeting on Sunday, where the Israeli decision was denounced.
The announcement by Israel on Friday was something of a surprise because many analysts believed that the diplomatic recognition of Somaliland was more likely to be announced first by U.S. President Donald Trump, who confirmed in August that he was considering the idea.
A number of U.S. lawmakers, including Republican Senator Ted Cruz, have called for U.S. recognition of Somaliland and proposed a bill to support it. The government of Somaliland has reportedly offered mineral rights and a site for a naval base in exchange for U.S. diplomatic support.
Recognition of Somaliland was also proposed in Project 2025, the document prepared by the U.S.-based Heritage Foundation that was widely seen as an unofficial agenda of Mr. Trump’s likely policy priorities for his current presidential term.
Mr. Netanyahu, who arrived in the United States on Sunday and is expected to meet Mr. Trump as early as Monday, said on Friday that he would tell Mr. Trump that Somaliland is willing to join the Abraham Accords.
But in comments to the New York Post after the Israeli announcement, Mr. Trump gave mixed signals. Asked whether the United States would recognize Somaliland, he said: “Just say, ‘No.’” He added: “Does anyone know what Somaliland is, really?”
In the same interview, however, he said he would study the idea of swapping diplomatic recognition in exchange for a U.S. naval port in Somaliland.
Most of Somaliland’s African neighbours were quick to criticize the Israeli announcement on the weekend. The main exception was Ethiopia, which remained officially silent.
Ethiopia is diplomatically close to Somaliland and signed an agreement with Somaliland’s leaders in 2024 in which the landlocked country would reportedly gain access to Somaliland’s coastline in exchange for recognition of Somaliland’s independence. The agreement sparked controversy and was never implemented.
The government of Somalia, which is recognized by the UN to include Somaliland, issued a series of statements criticizing the Israeli decision and calling it a “blatant attack” on Somalia’s sovereignty.
“The illegal aggression of PM Netanyahu in recognizing a part of Somalia’s Northern region is against international law,” said Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud in a social-media post on Saturday.
“Meddling with Somalia’s internal affairs is contrary to established legal and diplomatic rules,” he said.
In the capital, Mogadishu, thousands of Somalis took to the streets on Sunday night to protest the Israeli decision. Some burned an Israeli flag and tore up Somaliland posters.