# Somaliland **Somaliland** is the northern part of [[Somalia]] that has governed itself since 1991, with its own elections and armed forces, and that almost no one recognizes as a country. It was a British protectorate, separate from Italian-ruled southern Somalia, until the two merged at independence in 1960. When the Somali state collapsed in 1991 it declared the union over. On December 26, 2025 [[Israel]] became the first UN member state to recognize it. ## The port Somaliland's main asset is Berbera, a deep-water port on the Gulf of Aden, across the water from [[Yemen]]. In 2016 the Dubai state-owned operator DP World won a 30-year concession to run and expand it, with planned investment of up to $442 million. In February 2017 Somaliland agreed to let the [[United Arab Emirates]] build a military base there as well. Somalia's parliament voted in March 2018 to ban DP World from the country; the company stayed. Landlocked [[Ethiopia]] wants Berbera too. On January 1, 2024 it signed a memorandum with Somaliland that was reported to trade a naval lease for recognition. Turkish mediation produced the Ankara Declaration that December, in which Ethiopia reaffirmed Somalia's territorial integrity, and the memorandum has not been carried out. ## Recognition | Date | Event | |---|---| | Nov 2024 | Opposition leader Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, known as Irro, wins the presidency | | Dec 26, 2025 | Israel recognizes Somaliland | | Jan 2026 | The separatist leader of southern Yemen escapes to Abu Dhabi by way of Berbera, according to the Saudi-led coalition | | Jan 12, 2026 | Somalia cancels all its agreements with the Emirates, including the Berbera arrangements. Somaliland rejects Mogadishu's authority over them and the port keeps operating | | Jun 2026 | Irro visits Israel and opens an embassy in Jerusalem | | Sep 2026 | Irro visits the United States and, according to *African Arguments*, offers the port, a mineral concession and a possible base; Washington does not recognize Somaliland | | Early Nov 2026 | Israel's first ambassador presents his credentials in the capital, Hargeisa, and the cornerstone of an embassy is laid | Israel remains the only state to have done so. The United States, the African Union and the Emirates itself have held back, though the Emirates pointedly declined to sign the joint Arab and Islamic statement condemning Israel's move. ## Why it's on the map **It is where three contests overlap.** For the [[Saudi-Emirati Rivalry]], Somaliland is the Emirati foothold that [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Egypt]] and [[Turkey]] are trying to contain by backing Mogadishu. For Israel it is a partner on the far side of the [[Bab el-Mandeb]] from the [[Houthis]]. For Ethiopia it is a route to the sea. **It is also a test of how states get made.** Somaliland has run its own affairs for 35 years and has lacked only the recognition. The wiki's [[Ethiopian History Hub]] follows that question from the 1890s: recognition is a promise, and its worth depends on who is prepared to back it. **And it turned up in an American deportation notice.** When the Trump administration ended [[Temporary Protected Status]] for Somalis in January 2026, the notice said returnees could live in safer parts of the country such as Somaliland, a territory the United States does not recognize. ## See Also - [[Somalia]] · [[Somali Civil War]] · [[Saudi-Emirati Rivalry]] · [[United Arab Emirates]] · [[Israel]] - [[Ethiopia]] · [[Ethiopian History Hub]] · [[Yemen]] · [[Southern Transitional Council]] · [[Bab el-Mandeb]]