Jerusalem (Somalia Today) — Somaliland’s president opened a diplomatic mission in Jerusalem on Monday after meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, deepening Israel’s ties with the self-declared administration in northwestern Somalia.
President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, widely known as Irro, held talks with Netanyahu during a landmark visit that Israeli and Somaliland officials described as the start of a new phase in diplomatic and strategic relations.
The visit came months after Israel recognised Somaliland’s claim to independence on December 26, 2025, becoming the first country to do so since the region broke away from Somalia in 1991.
Somalia rejects Somaliland’s claim and regards the territory as part of the Federal Republic of Somalia.
During the visit, Israeli and Somaliland officials signed a Strategic Joint Declaration of Cooperation covering agriculture, water management, security, technology, investment, economic development and infrastructure.
Abdullahi also presented Netanyahu with Somaliland’s National Medal of Honour in recognition of Israel’s decision.
“Today, a new chapter in history has been written,” Abdullahi said in a statement, thanking Netanyahu, the Israeli government and the people of Israel for becoming “the first nation in thirty-five years to formally recognise the Republic of Somaliland as a sovereign and independent state”.
He said the decision affirmed Somaliland’s “nationhood, independence, and inherent right to self-determination”.
The language marked a major symbolic victory for Hargeisa, but Somalia has repeatedly rejected any foreign recognition of Somaliland as a violation of its sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Jerusalem mission
Later Monday, Abdullahi and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar opened Somaliland’s diplomatic mission in Jerusalem, making it the eighth foreign embassy-style mission in the city and the first such mission opened by Somaliland anywhere.
The United States, Guatemala, Honduras, Kosovo, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay and Fiji also maintain embassies in Jerusalem. Other countries, including Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, have branches or diplomatic offices in the city.
The Somaliland mission opened in Jerusalem’s Har Hotzvim high-tech park, according to Israeli reports.
Most countries keep their embassies in Tel Aviv because Jerusalem’s status remains one of the most sensitive issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Israel regards the whole city as its capital, while Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state.
“Somaliland will never forget this historic gesture of friendship, mutual respect, and principled recognition,” Abdullahi said.
He said Somaliland and Israel would build “a deep and enduring partnership founded on mutual respect, security, innovation, development, and a shared commitment to advancing the prosperity and well-being of our peoples”.
Secret diplomacy
Sa’ar said Monday that the relationship had grown through months of quiet contacts before Israel publicly recognised Somaliland’s independence claim.
The Israeli foreign minister revealed that he met Abdullahi at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem in October, before the formal recognition announcement.
“I will always be proud of the privilege I had in writing the first pages of the story of our relationship,” Sa’ar said.
“I am sure this partnership will continue and grow stronger,” he added.
Sa’ar thanked Abdullahi for opening the mission in Jerusalem and said he believed more countries would follow.
“There are indeed challenges in building the relationship between Israel and Somaliland,” Sa’ar said. “Unfortunately, there are many who are trying to thwart it, but they will not succeed.”
Abdullahi praised Sa’ar for what he called “his important role in advancing relations between the countries”.
“You were the first to see us,” Abdullahi said, according to Israeli accounts of the meeting.
Israeli officials have cast the relationship as part of a broader effort to expand ties with Muslim-majority partners, while Somaliland officials see Israel’s recognition as the most important diplomatic breakthrough in their long campaign for international acceptance.
Somalia rejects move
Somalia has strongly opposed Israel’s decision, saying no foreign government has the legal right to deal with Somaliland as a separate state.
Mogadishu has warned that recognition of Somaliland’s independence claim threatens Somalia’s unity and could fuel instability in the Horn of Africa.
A group of Arab and Muslim countries has also condemned the move, calling it a violation of Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The African Union has long avoided recognising Somaliland, fearing that such a move could encourage other separatist claims across the continent.
Somaliland authorities argue that their case differs from other breakaway claims. They say the former British protectorate gained independence in 1960 before voluntarily uniting with Somalia, and that the union later collapsed under dictatorship, war and state failure.
“For more than three decades, our nation has remained steadfast in its commitment to peace, democracy, stability, and the democratic expression of the will of its people,” Abdullahi said.
He called the agreement with Israel “a historic milestone” and said it would “leave an enduring mark” on Somaliland’s history.
“Somaliland has prevailed,” he said.
Strategic stakes
The new relationship also carries strategic weight for Israel.
Somaliland sits along the Gulf of Aden, close to the Bab al-Mandab strait, one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints.
The route links the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean and has gained renewed importance during attacks on shipping by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Huthi movement.
Israel sees potential security and economic value in deeper ties with Hargeisa, while Somaliland authorities hope the relationship will bring investment, technology and wider international attention.
Abdullahi said the declaration created the foundation for cooperation in “agriculture, water management, security, technology, investment, economic development, and infrastructure”.
“This achievement represents a defining moment in Somaliland’s national journey and a significant milestone for its people,” he said.
For Israel, the opening adds another foreign mission in Jerusalem at a time when most governments still avoid moving embassies there.
For Somaliland, a region in northwestern Somalia seeking recognition, the visit marks its clearest attempt yet to turn a disputed diplomatic breakthrough into a wider international opening.
