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Somalia and the African Union reacted angrily Friday after Israel became the first country to formally recognise the northern region of Somaliland as an independent state.Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in 1991 and has pushed for international recognition for decades, with president Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi making it a top priority since taking office last year.Israel announced Friday that it viewed Somaliland as an “independent and sovereign state”, prompting Somalia to call the decision a “deliberate attack” on its sovereignty that would undermine regional peace.Several other countries condemned Israel’s decision. The African Union (AU) rejected the move and warned that it risked “setting a dangerous precedent with far-reaching implications for peace and stability across the continent”.Somaliland “remains an integral part” of Somalia, an AU member, said the pan-African body’s head Mahamoud Ali Youssouf.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the decision was “in the spirit of the Abraham Accords”, referring to a series of agreements brokered by US President Donald Trump in his first term that normalised ties between Israel and several Arab nations.Netanyahu had invited Abdullahi to visit, the Israeli leader’s office said.Asked by the New York Post newspaper whether the United States planned to also recognise Somaliland, Trump said “no”.”Does anyone know what Somaliland is, really?” he added.Hailing Israel’s decision as a “historic moment”, Abdullahi said in a post on X that it marked the beginning of a “strategic partnership”.The Palestinian Authority rejected Israel’s recognition of Somaliland.It said on X that Israel had previously named Somaliland “as a destination for the forced displacement of our Palestinian people, particularly from the Gaza Strip”, and warned against “complicity” with such a move.In Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, crowds of people took to the streets to celebrate, many carrying the flag of the breakaway state, said sources.- ‘Overt interference’ -Turkey, a close ally of Somalia, also condemned the move.”This initiative by Israel, which aligns with its expansionist policy… constitutes overt interference in Somalia’s domestic affairs”, a foreign ministry statement said.Egypt said its top diplomat had spoken with counterparts from Turkey, Somalia and Djibouti, who together condemned the move and emphasised “full support for the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Somalia”.In a video showing Netanyahu speaking to Abdullahi by telephone, the Israeli leader said that he believed the new relationship would offer economic opportunities.”I am very, very happy and I am very proud of this day and I want to wish you and the people of Somaliland the very, very best,” Netanyahu said.A self-proclaimed republic, Somaliland enjoys a strategic position on the Gulf of Aden and has its own money, passports and army.But it has been diplomatically isolated since unilaterally declaring independence.- Strategic move -Israel’s regional security interests may lie behind the move.”Israel requires allies in the Red Sea region for many strategic reasons, among them the possibility of a future campaign against the Houthis,” said the Institute for National Security Studies in a paper last month, referring to Yemen’s Iran-backed rebels.Israel repeatedly hit targets in Yemen after the Gaza war broke out in October 2023, in response to Houthi attacks on Israel that the rebels said were in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.The Houthis have halted their attacks since a fragile truce began in Gaza in October.Somaliland’s lack of international recognition has hampered access to foreign loans, aid and investment, and the territory remains deeply impoverished.A deal between landlocked Ethiopia and Somaliland last year to lease a stretch of coastline for a port and military base enraged Somalia.Israel has been trying to bolster relations with countries in the Middle East and Africa.Historic agreements struck late in Trump’s first term in 2020 saw several countries including the Muslim-majority United Arab Emirates and Morocco normalise relations with Israel.But wars that have stoked Arab anger, particularly in Gaza, have hampered recent efforts to expand ties further.burs-jj/jgc/ceg/mjw

Somalia and the African Union reacted angrily Friday after Israel formally recognised the northern region of Somaliland as an “independent and sovereign state” — the first country to do so.Somaliland, which declared independence from Somalia in 1991, has for decades pushed for international recognition, which has been the key priority for president Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi since he took office last year.But a Somali foreign ministry statement warned the decision was a “deliberate attack” on its sovereignty that would undermine peace in the region. Several other countries also condemned Israel’s decision.The African Union said it “firmly rejects” Israel’s move, warning: “Any attempt to undermine the unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of Somalia…risks setting a dangerous precedent with far-reaching implications for peace and stability across the continent.”Somaliland “remains an integral part of the Federal Republic of Somalia”, which is a member of the AU, the pan-African body’s head, Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, said.Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he announced “the official recognition of the Republic of Somaliland as an independent and sovereign state”, making Israel the first country to do so.”The declaration is in the spirit of the Abraham Accords,” Netanyahu’s office said, referring to several agreements between Israel and Arab countries brokered by US President Donald Trump during his first presidency to normalise ties with Israel.It said Netanyahu had invited Abdullahi to visit.Trump, when asked by the New York Post newspaper about US recognition of Somaliland, said “no” and added: “Does anyone know what Somaliland is, really?”Hailing Israel’s decision, Abdullahi said in a post on X that it marked the beginning of a “strategic partnership”.”This is a historic moment as we warmly welcome” he said, affirming “Somaliland’s readiness to join the Abraham Accords,” he added.In Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, crowds of people took to the streets to celebrate, many carrying the flag of the breakaway state, said sources.- ‘Overt interference’ -Turkey, a close ally of Somalia, also condemned the move.”This initiative by Israel, which aligns with its expansionist policy…constitutes overt interference in Somalia’s domestic affairs”, it said in a foreign ministry statement.Egypt’s foreign ministry said its top diplomat had spoken with his counterparts from Turkey, Somalia and Djibouti, who together condemned the move and emphasised “full support for the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Somalia”.In video showing Netanyahu speaking to Abdullahi by telephone, the Israeli leader said that he believed the new relationship would offer economic opportunities.”I am very, very happy and I am very proud of this day and I want to wish you and the people of Somaliland the very, very best,” Netanyahu said.A self-proclaimed republic, Somaliland enjoys a strategic position on the Gulf of Aden, has its own money, passports and army. But since its unilateral declaration of independence in 1991, it has grappled with decades of isolation.- Strategic -Analysts say matters of strategy were behind Israel’s drive to recognise Somaliland.”Israel requires allies in the Red Sea region for many strategic reasons, among them the possibility of a future campaign against the Houthis,” said the Institute for National Security Studies in a paper last month, referring to Yemen’s Iran-backed rebels.Israel repeatedly hit targets in Yemen after the Gaza war broke out in October 2023, in response to Houthi attacks on Israel that the rebels said were in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.The Houthis have halted their attacks since a fragile truce began in Gaza in October.Somaliland’s lack of international recognition has hampered access to foreign loans, aid and investment, and the territory remains deeply impoverished.A deal between landlocked Ethiopia and Somaliland last year to lease a stretch of coastline for a port and military base enraged Somalia.Israel has been trying to bolster relations with countries in the Middle East and Africa.Historic agreements struck late in Trump’s first term in 2020 saw several countries including Muslim-majority United Arab Emirates and Morocco normalise relations with Israel, but wars that have stoked Arab anger, particularly in Gaza, have hampered recent efforts. burs-jj/jgc/ceg

An explosion killed at least eight worshippers at a mosque in a predominantly Alawite area of Syria’s Homs on Friday, state media said, with an Islamist militant group claiming responsibility.The attack during Friday prayers is the latest on the Alawite community, and the second blast in a place of worship since Islamist authorities took power a year ago, after a suicide bombing in a Damascus church killed 25 people in June.In a statement on Telegram, extremist group Saraya Ansar al-Sunna said its fighters “detonated a number of explosive devices” in the Imam Ali Bin Abi Talib Mosque in the central Syrian city.The group formed after the ouster last year of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, himself a member of the Alawite community, and had claimed responsibility for the June church bombing, though authorities blamed the Islamic State group.State news agency SANA reported an explosion in the mosque in Homs’s Wadi al-Dahab neighbourhood and gave a preliminary toll of at least eight dead and 18 wounded, citing a health ministry official.An AFP photographer saw security forces cordoning off the area around the mosque while inside, personnel stood guard as red tape encircled the blackened, debris-strewn corner where the blast went off.Usama Ibrahim, 47, who was being treated in hospital for shrapnel wounds to his head and back, said he was at Friday prayers when he heard was a loud explosion.”The world turned red… and I fell to the ground. Then I saw blood flowing from my head,” he told AFP.- ‘Shrapnel all around’ -Syria’s interior ministry said in a statement that “a terrorist explosion” targeted the mosque and that authorities had “begun investigating and collecting evidence to pursue the perpetrators of this criminal act”.SANA quoted a security source as saying that initial investigations indicated that “explosive devices planted inside the mosque” caused the blast.As victims’ families gathered at the hospital, wounded bookseller Ghadi Maarouf, 38, told AFP that the explosion occurred “just before the imam was to ascend the minbar to deliver the sermon”, referring to the imam’s raised platform.”It was a huge explosion, and I saw shrapnel flying all around me,” said Maarouf, whose leg was wounded in the blast.Syria’s foreign ministry condemned a “cowardly criminal act”, saying it came “in the context of repeated desperate attempts to undermine security and stability and spread chaos among the Syrian people”, vowing to hold the attackers accountable.Several countries including Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Turkey and Jordan condemned the attack.France said the blast was an “act of terrorism” designed to destabilise the country, while United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres condemned the “unacceptable” attack and said the perpetrators should be brought to justice.Most Syrians are Sunni Muslim, and Homs city is home to a Sunni majority but also has several predominantly Alawite areas, a community whose faith stems from Shiite Islam.Since Assad’s fall, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor and Homs province residents have reported kidnappings and killings targeting members of the minority community, while the country has seen several bloody sectarian episodes.- Detainees released -Syria’s coastal areas saw the massacre of Alawite civilians in March, with authorities accusing armed Assad supporters of sparking the violence by attacking security forces.A national commission of inquiry said at least 1,426 members of the minority were killed, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor put the toll at more than 1,700.Late last month, thousands of people demonstrated on the coast in protest at fresh attacks targeting Alawites in Homs and other regions.Before and after the March bloodshed, authorities carried out a massive arrest campaign in predominantly Alawite areas, which are also former Assad strongholds.On Friday, Syrian state television reported the release of 70 detainees in the coastal city of Latakia “after it was proven that they were not involved in war crimes”, saying more releases would follow.Despite assurances from Damascus that all Syria’s communities will be protected, the country’s minorities remain largely wary of their future under the new Islamist authorities.The Supreme Alawite Islamic Council, which says it represents the community in Syria and abroad, said Friday’s attack was part of an “organised” campaign “against the Alawite community in particular, and against the rest of the Syrian communities in an escalating manner”, demanding international protection.In July, sectarian clashes in southern Syria’s Druze-majority Sweida province saw more than 2,000 people killed.In a speech this month marking a year since the fall of Assad, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa emphasised the importance of all Syrians unifying efforts to “to build a strong Syria”.