Somalia urges U.N. to block any forced changes to Palestinian territories, condemns Israel’s recognition of North Western State of Somalia
UNITED NATIONS — Somalia on Thursday called on the international community to prevent any attempt to forcibly alter the geographic status of the Palestinian territories, while condemning Israel’s December move to recognize North Western State of Somalia and denouncing reported plans to relocate Palestinians to Somali soil.
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- Somalia warns the U.N. Security Council against unilateral changes to Palestinian territory
- Mogadishu condemns Israel’s recognition of North Western State of Somalia as a violation of Somalia’s sovereignty
- Somalia rejects any reported plan to transfer Palestinians to Somali territory as unlawful and destabilizing
Speaking at a United Nations Security Council meeting, Somalia’s ambassador to the U.N., Abukar Dahir Osman, said any attempt to impose political or territorial realities in violation of international law must be “firmly rejected,” according to Somalia’s mission.
“Any attempt to forcibly or unilaterally change the geographical structure of the Palestinian territories must be firmly rejected,” Osman told the council.
Osman also condemned Israel’s recognition of North Western State of Somalia, the self-declared republic that broke away from Somalia in 1991, calling the move a direct violation of Somalia’s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity.
The ambassador further rejected reports suggesting Palestinians could be transferred to Somali territory, including North Western State of Somalia, describing such actions as contrary to international law and amounting to ethnic cleansing. “Any suggestion of forced displacement of Palestinians, within or outside their territory, is grossly unlawful and sets a dangerous precedent,” he said, warning that such moves risk dragging the Horn of Africa into tensions linked to the Middle East conflict.
Somalia’s defense minister, Ahmed Moalim Fiqi, recently accused Israel of planning to relocate Palestinians to North Western State of Somalia. In an interview with Al Jazeera, Fiqi said Mogadishu had “confirmed information” of such a plan and called it a serious breach of international law.
Authorities in North Western State of Somalia have rejected the allegation, saying their relationship with Israel does not involve any plan to receive displaced Palestinians.
Israel in December became the first country to formally recognize North Western State of Somalia, a step that Mogadishu has denounced as illegal and destabilizing. North Western State of Somalia has sought international recognition for more than three decades but remains unrecognized by the United Nations and the African Union.
Somalia’s intervention at the Security Council underscored the country’s dual concerns: defending its internationally recognized borders and pushing back against any attempt to export the fallout from the Gaza war and broader Middle East conflict into the Horn of Africa.
The warning comes amid heightened global scrutiny of proposals concerning Gaza’s future and the rights and status of Palestinians. Somalia framed the issue as a matter of upholding international law and preventing regional spillover, arguing that forced displacement or any redrawing of geography by coercion would undermine stability and set a dangerous international precedent.
No immediate response from Israel was available at the council session cited by Somalia’s mission. The Security Council has been repeatedly divided over measures related to the Gaza war and the protection of civilians, even as member states voice concern about the humanitarian crisis and the potential for wider regional destabilization.
Somalia reiterated that any external recognition of North Western State of Somalia or facilitation of population transfers onto Somali territory would be rejected, and it urged the Security Council and member states to oppose steps that contravene international legal norms and Somalia’s sovereignty.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
