Israel becomes first country to recognise Somaliland as independent state

Israel has become the first country to formally recognise the self-declared Republic of Somaliland as an independent and sovereign state.

Speaking on Friday, December 26, 2025, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would seek immediate cooperation with Somaliland in agriculture, health, technology, and the economy.

Netanyahu congratulated Somaliland’s President, Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, praised his leadership, and invited him to visit Israel.

“This declaration is in the spirit of the Abraham Accords, signed at the initiative of President Trump,” he wrote on X.

The 2020 accords were brokered by Trump’s first administration and included Israel formalising diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, with other countries joining later.

Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, and Somaliland’s president signed a joint declaration of mutual recognition.

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Abdullahi said in a statement that Somaliland would join the Abraham Accords, calling it a step toward regional and global peace.

The president said Somaliland was committed to building partnerships, boosting mutual prosperity and promoting stability across the Middle East and Africa.

Somaliland has enjoyed effective autonomy – and relative peace and stability – since 1991 when Somalia descended into civil war, but the breakaway region has failed to receive recognition from any other country.

Over the years, Somalia has rallied international actors against any country recognising Somaliland, according to Reuters.

In March, Somalia and its breakaway region of Somaliland also denied receiving any proposal from the United States or Israel to resettle Palestinians from Gaza, with Mogadishu saying it categorically rejected any such move.

The Star