Somaliland: A Detailed Explainer

[Deeq A.]

 

Map of the Horn of Africa by Xarbi Graphics and Logo Designs, Public Domain (Wikimedia Commons). Source: Wikimedia Commons, Map of the Horn of Africa.png.

On December 26th 2025, the State of Israel became the first country in the world to formally recognize Somaliland as an independent country. After talks between Israel and Somaliland, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the recognition of Somaliland and invited the President of Somaliland, Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, to visit Israel. As part of recognition, Somaliland has pledged to join the Abraham Accords, a treaty brokered in 2020 between Israel and several Muslim countries by the United States. The recognition is likely to give Israel a strong ally near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait as well as providing Israel with a strategic partner close to Yemen.

The backlash against Israel was immediate and the move has drawn sharp criticism from the African Union, Arab League, and the OIC (Organization of Islamic Cooperation). Israel also drew direct criticism from Egypt and Turkey, two of Somalia’s staunchest allies. The UN mission of the government of Somalia requested an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council which is expected to take place on Monday, December 29th. Despite Somaliland being de facto independent, the Somalia government views Somaliland as an integral part of their territory under international law, a claim backed up by the United Nations and African Union though it does not reflect the situation on the ground.

The US has shown some indication that they will consider recognition of Somaliland. The head of US Africa Command, General Dagvin Anderson, visited Somaliland in late November 2025. In addition to this, Republican Representative Scott Perry introduced the Somaliland Independence Act in June 2025 which currently has backing from several Republican representatives. US President Donald Trump spoke to the New York Post on Saturday and asked a question many people around the world are wondering. He said, “Does anyone know what Somaliland is, really?” He also said he would study the issue further. Based on current reporting the President seems to have indicated that he will not move to recognize Somaliland in the coming weeks. The move by Israel has led to renewed international attention including from President Trump about Somaliland, a territory that has operated independently from Somalia since 1991.

Background of Somaliland:

Somaliland is a small self-governing territory located in northern Somalia. Somaliland is located south of the Gulf of Aden close to the vital Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The territory borders Somalia to the east, Ethiopia to the south and west, and Djibouti to the northwest. Somaliland has 530 miles of coastline along the Gulf of Aden. The state claims maritime rights over part of the Gulf of Aden but this maritime territory is internationally treated as part of Somalia. Directly north across the Gulf of Aden lies Yemen.

Somaliland is made up of six regions which in total make up a land mass of approximately 68,000 square miles. The capital of the territory is Hargeisa which is currently estimated to have a population of about 1.2 million people according to World Population Review. The total population of the country is estimated to be about 5.7 million as of 2019 but numbers vary. Most of the country is dry and desert-like. The vast majority of Somaliland is considered arid while some of the country is considered semi-arid. The country has three official languages, Somali, Arabic, and English. The official religion is Islam with about 99 percent of the inhabitants being Muslims. Almost all of these Muslims are Sunnis.

History of Somaliland:

Somaliland traces its current borders and right to exist to the colonial period. In 1884 the British Empire began negotiating with different clans in Somaliland in order to supply meat to the British garrison, at the Port of Aden, in Yemen. Following more treaties Britain established the protectorate of Somaliland which remained a backwater of the British Empire. At this time Italy controlled the rest of Somalia as a colony which they called Italian Somaliland and France held the colony of French Somaliland which is present day Djibouti. British Somaliland achieved independence from Britain on June 26th 1960 and was initially recognized by over 30 countries including Israel and the United States. The modern state of Somaliland traces its right to its territory to this brief period of independence and the colonial period. Upon independence from Britain, Somaliland’s parliament voted for union with Italian Somaliland to form the modern country of Somalia which took effect on July 1st, 1960, five days after their initial independence.

In 1969 the president of Somalia Abdirashid Ali Shermarke was assassinated and General Mohamed Siad Barre launched a military coup which took over the country. Said Barre installed himself as President and ruled as a dictator until his overthrow in 1991. From 1977 to 1978 President Siad Barre launched a failed invasion of the ethnic Somali Ogaden region of Ethiopia leading to the brutal Ogaden war. Following the Somali loss to Ethiopia, Somalia fell into increasing violence. Despite his official state policy of Scientific Socialism, Siad Barre, who was a member of the Marehan subclan of the Darod clan family, increasingly tried to manipulate the various Somali clans off of each other in order to stay in power. Somaliland is mostly made up of the Isaaq clan which was seen as an enemy by President Siad Barre. These historical developments set the stage for Somaliland to declare independence from Somalia in 1991.

The Independence and Formation of Somaliland:

The Somalia National Movement (SNM) was a rebel group which sought to separate the mostly Isaaq Somaliland from the government of Somalia in Mogadishu. In response to increasing unrest Siad Barre ordered the bombing of the city of Hargeisa which destroyed the city and combined with other violence killed tens of thousands of people in Somaliland. President Siad Barre was overthrown in 1991 and he fled to Kenya. After the overthrow of President Siad Barre most of Somalia broke down into a protracted civil war marked by large scale violence and state collapse. This included the battle of Mogadishu in 1993 which is best known for the infamous Black Hawk Down incident in which 18 US soldiers were killed. The country of Somalia has remained unstable since the civil war with the Al Qaeda affiliated terrorist group Al Shabaab controlling large portions of the country as well as the region of Puntland operating autonomously though not declaring independence. Somalia has struggled with numerous security issues including terrorism and maritime piracy.

Despite being internationally recognized as part of Somalia, Somaliland presents a very different picture. Following the fall of Siad Barre Somaliland declared independence from Somalia. The government of Somalia views this move as illegal and a violation of their sovereignty to this day. The African Union and United Nations have supported the Somali Government’s territorial integrity and see Somaliland as part of that territory. The international community fears that a recognition of Somaliland’s independence would result in the further breakup of Somalia and would destabilize the Horn of Africa region. This follows the African Union’s general policy of respecting colonial era borders in order to secure peace and stability throughout Africa. While Somaliland claims that they are respecting colonial rule and are the successor to the British Protectorate of Somaliland, the international community has largely rejected this claim. This is due to the fact that Somaliland voluntarily voted for union with the rest of Somalia in 1960 which complicates their claim to independence.

In 1991 various clans of Somaliland held a Shir. A Shir is a traditional Somali custom for resolving conflicts between clans and for making sure there is no violence in the future. While this is not the same as a western backed peace process the Shir held in 1991 largely served the same purpose. It established peace between the clans and began the process of government formation. Over the next ten years the clans largely disarmed and formed a national police force in order to enforce the laws. The process culminated in a 2001 referendum in which Somaliland adopted the current constitution that it uses today.

Governance and Freedom in Somaliland:

Despite having low income levels by global standards, Somaliland has comparatively high degrees of political stability and governance compared to the rest of the Horn of Africa according to Freedom House and other international analysts. Since its independence in 1991, the state has maintained a democracy despite being largely dominated by the Isaaq clan family. The government structure takes influence from both western styles of government as well as traditional Somali customs and laws. The government has a bicameral parliament which is made up of an elected house of representatives and an unelected clan appointed house of elders. The country has a president and a supreme court with lower courts throughout the country. The country has had 6 presidents since its independence in 1991. While it is very difficult to start a political party in Somaliland, the country has had competitive parliamentary and presidential elections between its three major parties. The most recent presidential elections took place in 2024 where current President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi was elected for his first term.

While Somaliland has a democratic system the state has had some problems with maintaining freedom and democracy. While there is some freedom of the press the government owns and operates one of the major TV stations and also the only domestically licensed radio station. In addition there have been some reports of harassment and detention of journalists who are critical of the government. The elections in 2003, 2010, and 2017 have been contested though none of these erupted into large-scale violence. The country has a ranking of 42/100 by Freedom House which makes it a partially free country as of 2021. To see this compared to the Freedom House scores of other countries in the region and the world check the data listed below.

State	2021 Freedom House score: (0-100)	Status
Somaliland	42	Partly Free
Djibouti	24	Not Free
Ethiopia	22	Not Free
Somalia	7	Not Free
Israel	76	Free
United States	83	Free

Source: Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2021

This means that Somaliland is more free than many of its neighbors but nevertheless has significant issues. There have been some border disputes with the bordering autonomous Somali region of Puntland over territory both sides claim which has led to clashes. Internally there has not been a major terrorist attack since 2008. Somaliland arrests and jails members of the terrorist group Al Shabaab which is strong in the rest of Somalia. Hargeisa has a relatively low crime rate compared to other cities in the Horn of Africa.

Why has Somaliland Remained Unrecognized:

Somaliland has existed as a state since 1991 but it has failed to gain recognition by any country except for Israel, which extended recognition of December 26th 2025. While a state does not need international recognition to be a state under international law, the lack of recognition has significantly hurt the country. Under the Montevideo Convention of 1933 in order for a territory to be a state the territory needs a settled population, a defined territory, a government, and the ability to enter into relations with other states. Somaliland has all four of these things but has largely failed to gain international recognition or a seat at the United Nations. While no country other than Israel recognizes them, they have entered into unofficial relations with the governments of 19 countries in which they have diplomatic missions though not formal embassies. These countries include Djibouti, Ethiopia, South Africa, the United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates as well as several other countries. Despite having these diplomatic missions none of these countries recognize Somaliland as a country. The lack of recognition means that the country has difficulty accessing humanitarian aid or global finance, has a hard time doing trade, and has received very little business investment. Somaliland issues passports which are accepted by a small set of countries on a de facto basis. This lack of international recognition has resulted in a stunted economy with a GDP per capita of only about $675 as of 2017. The economy is mostly pastoral with most of the GDP coming from the trade of livestock. A few western businesses operate in Somaliland such as Western Union and Coca Cola.

Somaliland exists in a precarious situation internationally. While it does have a sovereign territory, a functioning government, and a partial democracy, it lacks international recognition from any country except for Israel. Somaliland has been uniquely stable and democratic for the region it is in. Despite this, its future largely depends on whether it can successfully court recognition from the international community, receive international aid, and build up a strong economy. It will be interesting to watch in the coming weeks what the effects of Israel’s recognition of Somaliland will be, whether other countries follow suit, and what will happen in the future to this unique country of Somaliland.

About the Author

William Goloboy was born in Sharon Massachusetts in 2006. He is currently a Freshmen at the American University of Paris where he is studying International Affairs.

https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/somaliland-a-detailed-explainer/

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