Israel gave a lavish state welcome to Somaliland's president in Jerusalem, offering rare honors to the leader of a breakaway region that only Israel recognizes.
President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, known as Cirro, arrived last Sunday for the first state visit by a Somaliland leader, six months after Israel became the first country to recognize its independence from Somalia.
"I am here as the president of Somaliland for the first state visit ever," Abdullahi told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. "For 35 years we have been asking the world to see us. And Israel and you yourself were the first to see us and recognize us."
Netanyahu framed the decision through the lens of Jewish history: "It is a very natural thing for us to do, because we remember as the Jewish people, a small people, who asked for the recognition of their rights from the world, so there is a natural sympathy to you."
The visit combined high-profile ceremony with substantive discussions. A strategic cooperation agreement was signed, signaling both sides' ambition to turn diplomatic recognition into a broader partnership encompassing security, trade, and regional strategy.
Somaliland sits across the Gulf of Aden from Yemen and controls a long stretch of coastline overlooking one of the world's busiest maritime corridors. As Netanyahu noted, its territory lies at the opposite end of the Red Sea, adjacent to the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a critical artery for global trade.
For Israel, which has exchanged fire with Yemen's Houthis and seen Red Sea shipping disrupted, the region has assumed growing strategic importance.
The visit also came against the backdrop of US President Donald Trump's memorandum of understanding with Iran, intensifying pressure on Netanyahu from critics who argue it leaves many of Israel's core security concerns unresolved.
Yossi Mekelberg, a Middle East analyst at Chatham House, said Somaliland offers Israel a rare strategic opening at a time of greater regional isolation. "They've not got many friends, and Israel is more alone now too," he said. "And if you look at the geography, it just makes a lot of sense."
Abdullahi was received by President Isaac Herzog at the presidential residence, then met Netanyahu and much of Israel's political and security leadership. He also laid a wreath at the grave of Theodor Herzl and received the Friends of Zion Award.
During the visit, Somaliland formally opened its embassy in West Jerusalem at a ceremony attended by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar. The move drew condemnation from Palestine, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, and the Arab League.
"Israel and Somaliland are going into the consolidation phase of this relationship," said Moses Chrispus Okello of the Institute for Security Studies. "But Israel's overall prize is not Somaliland, it is the Red Sea."
While Somaliland officials have expressed interest in cooperation across areas like water management, health, and agriculture, Israel's security interests have drawn the most attention. When Saar visited Somaliland in January, he said Israel was seeking a "strategic partnership" and defence cooperation.
Somali officials have alleged that Israel is interested in establishing a military facility potentially linked to operations against the Houthis in Yemen. Somaliland officials have refused to take a clear position. When asked about a possible military base, Abdullahi told Israeli outlet i24: "I cannot rule out."
Attention has centred on Berbera, Somaliland's largest coastal city on the Gulf of Aden, where an airport originally built by the Soviet Union and later used by NASA—while nominally civilian—has been recently militarised, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
During a meeting with Abdullahi, Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz said his country had cooperated for years "under the radar in a series of operations" with Somaliland and expected it would reach new levels.