Israel-Somaliland Friendship Society
    The relationship

    History of Israel–Somaliland Relations

    From recognition in 1960, through three decades of quiet goodwill, to the historic recognition of December 2025 — the story of two nations finding each other twice.

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    Two nations that first met in 1960 and found each other again 65 years later. Tap any year — or use the arrows — to move through the story.

    1960 · First Meeting

    1961–2025 · The Long Silence

    2025– · The New Era

    01

    26 June 19601960 · First Meeting

    Somaliland declares independence

    The State of Somaliland gains independence from Britain, recognized by 35 states around the world. After 76 years as a British protectorate, the Somaliland people take their future into their own hands.

    1. 26 June 1960: Somaliland declares independence. The State of Somaliland gains independence from Britain, recognized by 35 states around the world. After 76 years as a British protectorate, the Somaliland people take their future into their own hands.
    2. 26 June 1960: Israel among the first to recognize. On independence day itself, Foreign Minister Golda Meir signs Israel's Message of Recognition, extending de jure recognition to Prime Minister Egal's new state — one of the very first countries in the world to do so.
    3. 1 July 1960: Somaliland gives up its independence to join Somalia. Just five days after independence, Somaliland voluntarily merges with the former Italian Somaliland to form the Somali Republic — chasing the dream of a 'Greater Somalia.' The union is flawed from birth: the Act of Union is never properly ratified by both sides, and in the 1961 constitutional referendum the north boycotts and rejects it — 60% of northern votes cast are opposed. Power and resources concentrate in Mogadishu, and three decades of northern marginalization begin.
    4. 1987–1990: Civil war and the genocide of the Isaaq. The Barre regime wages a brutal campaign against the Isaaq people — an estimated 200,000 killed, and Hargeisa so devastated it becomes known as the 'Dresden of Africa.' The tragedy, and the liberation struggle it fueled, forged the nation that would soon re-declare its independence. In 1990, Israel was the only country in the world to formally denounce the genocide at the United Nations.
    5. 18 May 1991: Somaliland re-declares independence. Following the collapse of the Somali state, Somaliland re-declares its independence within the borders of the former British protectorate — beginning three decades of functioning, peaceful self-governance without international recognition.
    6. 1995: President Egal writes to Prime Minister Rabin. Somaliland's President Ibrahim Egal writes to Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin seeking diplomatic ties — an early, documented overture between the two nations.
    7. 2005: Hargeisa signals openness to Israel. President Dahir Riyale Kahin publicly declares Somaliland's freedom to establish relations with Israel, blaming Arab states for the deterioration in ties with Somaliland.
    8. 2010: Israel: "ready to recognise Somaliland again". An Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman states that Israel is ready to recognize Somaliland once more, recalling the 1960 precedent and President Egal's 1995 letter.
    9. August 2020: Somaliland welcomes the Abraham Accords. Somaliland publicly supports the Israel–UAE normalization agreement, aligning itself with the region's new architecture of pragmatic cooperation.
    10. 2022–2025: Quiet ties deepen — including a secret visit. Somaliland's leadership signals continued overtures toward Israel, and reports grow of expanding security and economic discussions. As later revealed by Foreign Minister Sa'ar, President Irro even made a secret visit to Israel in October 2025 — months before recognition.
    11. 26 December 2025: Israel recognizes the Republic of Somaliland. Israel becomes the first UN member state to formally recognize Somaliland as an independent, sovereign state. The two countries sign a mutual declaration in the spirit of the Abraham Accords — and Hargeisa erupts in celebration, with the Israeli flag lit across its skyline.
    12. January 2026: First official visit to Hargeisa. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar makes the first official Israeli visit to Hargeisa, opening the practical chapter of bilateral relations.
    13. February 2026: Israel's first assistance: water and know-how. Twenty-five Somaliland water-management specialists train in Tel Aviv, and Israel accepts Somaliland's first ambassador. Clean water and food security become the headline priorities of Israeli technical assistance to Somaliland.
    14. April–May 2026: Full diplomatic infrastructure. Israel appoints Michael Lotem as its first ambassador to Somaliland, and Somaliland announces the opening of its embassy in Jerusalem.
    15. 14–15 June 2026: State visit and an embassy in Jerusalem. President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi (Irro) makes Somaliland's first-ever state visit to Israel and inaugurates the Somaliland embassy in Jerusalem — the first embassy Somaliland has opened anywhere in the world.
    16. 16 June 2026: A strategic economic partnership is signed. President Irro and Prime Minister Netanyahu sign a Strategic Joint Declaration of Cooperation in Jerusalem — formalizing economic ties across agriculture, water, security, technology, investment, infrastructure, mining, and natural gas.

    Sources & further reading