Israel’s recognition of Somaliland drew widespread condemnation from Arab and African countries, following protests by 21 Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Arab, African and Muslim-majority countries against the move, after which the leader of Yemen’s Houthi rebels, Abdel-Malik al-Houthi, warned Israel that any Israeli presence in Somaliland constitutes aggression against Somalia and Yemen and a threat to regional security.
The warning by Abdel-Malik al-Houthi came amid rapidly intensifying regional reactions, as Israel on Friday became the first country to officially recognise Somaliland, the self-proclaimed republic that unilaterally declared separation from Somalia in 1991, a move that has remained diplomatically unrecognised for more than three decades, Al Jazeera reported.
The Houthi leadership framed the recognition as a hostile development with direct security implications for Yemen, Somalia, the Red Sea and the wider Horn of Africa, while signalling that any Israeli footprint in Somaliland would be treated as a legitimate military target by the group.
Somaliland, which has maintained relative stability compared to war-torn Somalia, has long argued that its sustained autonomy, defined borders, elected governments, currency, passport and armed forces justify international recognition, even as the African Union and the United Nations have consistently upheld Somalia’s territorial integrity.
Analysts note that Somaliland’s strategic location along the Gulf of Aden gives it outsized geopolitical significance, particularly for maritime security and Red Sea trade routes, which has fuelled speculation that Israel’s move is driven by broader security calculations.
Regional observers suggest that closer ties with Somaliland could provide Israel with improved access to the Red Sea corridor, a development that may recalibrate its military posture against the Houthis in Yemen, especially following repeated exchanges after the Gaza war that began in October 2023.
Although Houthi attacks on Israel have largely halted since a fragile truce took hold in Gaza in October, the group has continued to frame its regional posture within the context of opposition to Israeli military actions.
The decision triggered swift diplomatic backlash, as Somalia’s federal government condemned the recognition as unlawful and a deliberate violation of its sovereignty, while multilateral and regional bodies echoed similar concerns. On December 28, 2025, Somalia joined Jordan, Egypt, Algeria, Comoros, Djibouti, The Gambia, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Maldives, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Turkey, Yemen, Kuwait and Qatar, alongside the OIC, in unanimously rejecting Israel’s recognition of Somaliland.
The African Union, Egypt, Türkiye, the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Saudi-based Organisation of Islamic Cooperation criticised the move, while the European Union reiterated its position that Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity must be respected, underscoring the likelihood that Israel’s decision will continue to reverberate across an already volatile region.