Israel and Somaliland have been covertly cooperating for many years, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Wednesday.
The remarks, made during a meeting with visiting Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, come six months after Israel became the first country in the world to recognize the self-declared Islamic nation as an independent state and amid growing diplomatic ties between Israel and Africa.
“For many years, we cooperated under the radar in a series of operations that will remain classified,“ Katz said, according to remarks published by his office. “Now we are determined to bring our security cooperation to new heights, for the benefit of both peoples and for the benefit of stability in the region.”
Somaliland is strategically located in the center of the Horn of Africa along the Gulf of Aden, and directly across from Yemen, where the Houthis hold territory and subject international commercial shipping and naval vessels in the waterway to missile and drone threats.
Earlier this week, Somaliland opened its embassy in Jerusalem.
