Israel appoints envoy to breakaway Africa region despite protests

West Jerusalem’s latest move on Somaliland is “a direct breach” of Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, Mogadishu has said

Israel has appointed an ambassador to Somaliland, deepening ties with the breakaway Somali region months after its controversial decision to recognize the territory as an independent state.

Michael Lotem, former Israeli ambassador to Kenya, Azerbaijan, and Kazakhstan, was named as a non-resident envoy, according to a statement from Israel’s Foreign Ministry cited by public broadcaster KAN.

The appointment comes weeks after West Jerusalem accepted Somaliland’s first ambassador to Israel, ending the region’s decades of diplomatic isolation.

In December, Israel became the first UN member state to formally recognize Somaliland as an independent state, drawing widespread criticism from regional actors and Somalia, which considers the breakaway region part of its sovereign territory.

Somaliland broke away from Somalia and declared independence in 1991 after a decade-long civil war. The territory, located along the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden, has since built its own relatively stable government, security institutions, and currency, but it has not been internationally recognized.

READ MORE: Israel’s recognition of Somaliland ‘null and void’ – African Union

Somalia’s federal government has rejected Israel’s latest move. In a statement on Wednesday, the Foreign Ministry denounced the appointment of a diplomatic representative to “the northern region of Somalia” as “a direct breach” of the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

“Somalia categorically rejects any attempt to confer diplomatic or political recognition on any part of its territory outside the authority of the federal government,” the ministry said, declaring that Somaliland remains “an integral part” of Somalia.

Mogadishu had previously condemned Israel’s recognition of Somaliland as a violation of international law, warning that it undermines efforts to stabilize the East African nation after decades of conflict.

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The African Union’s Peace and Security Council has also since declared West Jerusalem’s recognition “null and void,” warning that any attempt to “alter borders by force, or illegal means to undermine the unity and territorial integrity of an AU member state, contravenes” continental and international law.

On Thursday, Somaliland dismissed Somalia’s protest as “misleading,” insisting that its diplomatic ties with Israel “constitute the exercise of its sovereign prerogatives and are not subject to external approval.”

Its Foreign Ministry said Mogadishu has no legal authority “to interfere in, comment on, or constrain Somaliland’s bilateral relations with any state.”