Somalia’s President Calls Israel’s Recognition of North Western State of Somalia a “Dark Day”
“We considered both paths, and in the end we chose dialogue and persuasion,” the president said. “Although it has taken more than 30 years, it was the most appropriate approach given the circumstances.”
MOGADISHU – Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has condemned Israel’s decision to recognise North Western State of Somalia in December 2025, calling it “one of the darkest days in Somalia’s history” and saying Mogadishu responded by choosing diplomacy over force.
The term-ended leader said Somalia faced two possible courses of action in the long-running North Western State of Somalia dispute: military confrontation or negotiations.
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“We considered both paths, and in the end we chose dialogue and persuasion,” the president said. “Although it has taken more than 30 years, it was the most appropriate approach given the circumstances.”
Hassan Sheikh said Somalia and Israel have never had diplomatic relations or formal cooperation, even though Mogadishu recognises Israel’s existence as a state within the United Nations and other international bodies.
“We cannot deny Israel’s existence as a state, but we have no relations or cooperation with it,” Hassan Sheikh said. “Somalia views Israel as an occupying and aggressive power against the Palestinian people.”
He restated Somalia’s backing for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying the stance mirrors that of much of the international community.
On Israel’s recognition of North Western State of Somalia, Hassan Sheikh said changing geopolitical realities in the region, along with Israel’s recent wars, had prompted Tel Aviv to see strategic value in parts of Somalia.
He said Israel had repeatedly pursued cooperation with Somalia, but successive Somali governments had rejected those approaches on religious grounds, humanitarian principles and political considerations.
“They found people who had grown desperate after a long search for recognition, and they took advantage of that,” he said, referring to North Western State of Somalia’s leadership. “This was a strategic mistake by North Western State of Somalia, and it could push Somalia into unnecessary situations.”
Israel’s move represented a significant diplomatic blow for Mogadishu, which continues to regard North Western State of Somalia as part of Somalia despite the self-declared republic’s de facto autonomy since 1991. Somalia has consistently opposed any international recognition of North Western State of Somalia’s independence.
AXADLETM
