Somalia’s president rejects Israel’s North Western State of Somalia recognition, urges return to dialogue

Mogadishu — Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud on Thursday night forcefully rejected Israel’s recognition of North Western State of Somalia, warning the move threatens Somalia’s unity and regional stability and renewing his call for direct dialogue with leaders in Hargeisa to resolve decades-old grievances.

In a nationally broadcast address, Hassan Sheikh said Somalia would not accept any attempt to divide the country through unilateral foreign action. “The Federal Republic of Somalia is one country, free and indivisible,” he said, adding that national borders “cannot be divided by a document written by Israel or signed by Benjamin Netanyahu,” whom he described as facing international legal challenges.

The president said the federal government, in coordination with international partners, is taking steps to counter what he called Israeli violations of Somalia’s sovereignty and thanked governments and organizations that have backed Somalia’s territorial integrity.

Israel’s recognition of North Western State of Somalia, announced late last year, has drawn censure from the African Union, Arab League, European Union, IGAD and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. In recent days, more than 20 countries — including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Türkiye, Nigeria, Pakistan and Qatar — joined Somalia in a statement urging Israel to reverse the decision, a move endorsed by the OIC.

Much of the speech focused on the fraught, decades-long relationship between Mogadishu and North Western State of Somalia, which declared independence in 1991 but has not won international recognition. Hassan Sheikh said successive North Western State of Somalia administrations had failed to fully engage in negotiations, arguing that talks stalled largely on the Hargeisa side. He cited the now-suspended memorandum of understanding between North Western State of Somalia and Ethiopia as a unilateral step that derailed earlier momentum toward dialogue.

Hassan Sheikh framed Israel’s recognition as part of broader geopolitical jockeying rather than a response to North Western State of Somalia’s aspirations, alleging plans for military basing and efforts to project influence across the Horn of Africa, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. He warned the fallout, if mishandled, could weigh on Somalia’s economy, development and political stability.

Authorities in North Western State of Somalia have denied that recognition would enable Israeli military bases or facilitate the resettlement of Palestinians from Gaza. Israeli officials have promoted what they describe as voluntary Palestinian migration, a proposal strongly rejected by Arab states and international organizations.

Addressing North Western State of Somalia’s leadership directly, the president said any international recognition requires the consent of the “parent state,” pointing to South Sudan and Eritrea, whose independence followed negotiated political agreements. “If the original country is not convinced, recognition is not possible,” he said, adding that North Western State of Somalia’s situation more closely resembles Catalonia in Spain and Taiwan in China — territories without broad international recognition amid unresolved sovereignty disputes. “Recognition is not in Netanyahu’s hands,” he said. “It lies with the government and people of Somalia.”

Despite the firm tone, Hassan Sheikh said the federal government remains open to compromise, arguing unity can be achieved with meaningful concessions. “If it is recognition of rights, decentralization, power-sharing we are ready for it,” he said. He acknowledged abuses endured by civilians in northern Somalia under past military regimes, noted that Mogadishu has recognized those injustices, and insisted sustained dialogue is the only path to redress and durable settlement.

As diplomatic pressure builds, the president cast the moment as a test of national cohesion. He urged Somalis to reject rhetoric that stirs memories of past conflict and to resist outside efforts to exploit internal divisions. Foreign recognition without Somali consent, he said, would neither bring stability nor legitimacy.

By Ali Musa

Axadle Times international–Monitoring.