Overview
- Foreign ministers from more than 20 countries and the OIC issued a joint statement denouncing Gideon Saar’s January 6 trip and urging Israel to revoke its recognition of Somaliland.
- The African Union convened an emergency ministerial meeting outside its original agenda, with Egypt warning the move set a destabilizing precedent across the continent.
- Iran’s Foreign Ministry called the visit a dangerous precedent and a blow to the United Nations’ legal order, echoing broader regional objections.
- Somaliland ruling party chairman Hersi Ali Haji Hassan defended ties with Israel as a bid for long-sought legitimacy, saying the relationship is currently diplomatic and economic while declining to discuss a potential Israeli base.
- Israel recognized Somaliland on December 26 and Saar met Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi in Hargeisa on January 6, making Israel the only state to extend formal recognition as the United States says the issue remains under review.