Overview
- Israel remains the only state to recognize Somaliland after the Dec. 26 announcement, prompting an emergency UN Security Council session.
- Most council members condemned the move as violating Somalia’s sovereignty, while the United States defended Israel’s right to establish relations and said its own policy is unchanged.
- Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said intelligence indicates Somaliland accepted conditions for recognition, including Palestinian resettlement, an Israeli base on the Gulf of Aden coast, and accession to the Abraham Accords, claims not independently verified.
- Erdogan met Mohamud in Istanbul, denounced the recognition as illegitimate, and announced Turkish plans to begin offshore drilling in 2026 alongside building a Somalia spaceport.
- Tens of thousands protested across Somalia, as analysts linked Israel’s step to securing a strategic foothold near the Bab el-Mandeb, and Somaliland praised Israeli and US references to 1988 mass killings.