Long Live Somaliland!
... and the Shah!
If you had asked me a week ago about the location of Somaliland, like 99.99% of my fellow Americans, I would have drawn a blank.
I knew, of course, that Somalia, a mish-mash of tribes in the Horn of Africa, was basically a failed state and that a famous, exasperating Somali congresswoman who hates America could well be in this country illegally. I was also well aware—how could I not be—of the outrageous metastasizing scandal in Minnesota and elsewhere with Somali immigrants accused of defrauding billions in taxpayer money via phony daycare centers and other faux government enterprises. I saw the nauseating defenses of these practices by Minnesota’s execrable governor, who might have been our vice president—we dodged the proverbial bullet on that one—and the equally execrable mayor of Minneapolis.
But nothing about Somaliland… until December 26, 2025, when I read that Israel became the first United Nations member state to formally recognize the Republic of Somaliland as an independent and sovereign state.
It could be another member of the Abraham Accords.
This was apparently news to President Trump, who, when asked almost immediately thereafter, seemed, for him, flummoxed and muttered something to the effect that they would “study” it. In the short term, he would likely have found it as difficult as the rest of us to locate Somaliland on a map.
It’s worth noting, however, that during their two press conferences on December 29, neither Israeli PM Netanyahu nor President Trump so much as mentioned this event that occurred three days previously, even though it could have extraordinary significance. Were they keeping mum deliberately?
By this time, I had learned the location of Somaliland, on the northern coast of Somalia, on the Gulf of Aden, within spitting distance—well, not quite, but close—of Yemen and the Houthis. Not surprisingly, the Mossad had been nosing around there for some time, cementing relations.
But who were these people? According to Grok, “Somaliland, a former British protectorate, has maintained relative stability, its own currency, passports, elections, and government since 1991, in contrast to ongoing instability in Somalia.”
They didn’t sound anything like Ilhan Omar and her “Benjamins.” In fact, their residents have been photographed waving the Israeli flag after their country’s leader signed agreements promising Israeli aid for agriculture, health, technology, and economic development.
Is this another important avatar of Netanyahu’s “New Middle East?” It could well be, but in the short run, it certainly will make life extremely difficult for the Houthis with the possibility of Israeli jets parked three hundred miles from their shores. Say goodbye to the terrorists’ control of the Gulf of Aden with its proximity to the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. Launching missiles and drones toward Israel won’t be easy either. The bellicose Houthis that control less than half of Yemen now could be in serious jeopardy.
Despite this, all the Middle East nations took the usual umbrage. (Who knows what they really think?) Iran was especially hostile, accusing Israel of attempting to fragment a Muslim country.
The mullahs indeed should be nervous, if not alarmed. The Houthis were their last reliable ally of any potency. Moreover, anti-regime demonstrations had broken out again on the streets of Tehran and across the country.
Yes, we have heard this song multiple times before, but this time it could be different. For one thing, their currency, the rial, is in free fall. Economic and ecological disasters are proliferating across the country. Iran is near becoming a failed state itself. And for once, the forces against the mullahs appear, at least for the moment, to be uniting around one person, Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi.
Positive developments have a dangerous side, not surprisingly, arising out of desperation. Rumors abound that the Republican Guard is working on biological or chemical weapons for their missiles.
Nevertheless, regime change in Iran would be monumental—for the Persian people and for the world. Pray for it. And pray for Somaliland.
The Organization of African Unity was formed in 1963 as African nations all over the continent were celebrating independence from European colonial rule. Faced with the prospect of approximately 50 independent nations being created that had been formed by colonial powers with little thought for ethnic or linguistic boundaries, the OAU took what was a reasonable but not always popular step of declaring that new nations would maintain their colonial boundaries.
Somaliland initially gained independence from Britain in 1960. But Somali General Mohammed Siad Barre didn't see it that way and in 1969 he took over Somaliland. The move probably made sense linguistically, but not given colonial history or the OAU charter.
Under that Charter, the takeover by Somalia should not have been allowed to stand. But the OAU was hardly memorable for sticking to principle and the African continent was undergoing numerous coups and separatist movements all over. Somaliland just didn't have the international importance of countries like South Africa, Nigeria, or Zaire/Congo, where ethnic divisions, geopolitical considerations and natural resources gained international attention that Somalia and Somaliland did not.
The OAU was replaced in 2002 by the African Union. It remain to be seen if the AU will be more successful than the OAU.
Shrewd cookies those Israelis! We all need to be uniting to repulse the lefties and islamists!