Somalia Will Not Accept Israeli Base in Berbera, President Mohamud Says

GOOBJOOG NEWS|QATAR: Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has said his government will not accept an Israeli military presence in Berbera “under any circumstances”, accusing Israel of seeking to establish a naval base and gain access to the strategic port city’s airport.

Speaking in an interview with Al Jazeera, Mohamud said Israel was planning to establish a naval base in Berbera and use the airport, claiming the move was intended to position Israel closer to the Gulf states and Iran.

“We will overcome the challenges posed to our country by Israeli moves,” Mohamud said, according to Al Jazeera.

Berbera lies on the Gulf of Aden, opposite Yemen and close to the Bab al-Mandab Strait, one of the world’s most strategically important shipping corridors connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean.

The President’s remarks represent one of Mogadishu’s strongest warnings yet over the prospect of an Israeli military presence in Somaliland.

Reports about a possible Israeli military facility around Berbera have circulated for months, although no final agreement establishing such a base has been publicly confirmed.

Somaliland initially denied that military arrangements with Israel were under discussion. However, officials later indicated that the possibility of an Israeli base was under consideration. Somaliland Presidency Minister Khadar Hussein Abdi told AFP earlier this year that he could not rule out allowing an Israeli military presence.

The issue has become increasingly sensitive because of Berbera’s location across the Gulf of Aden from Yemen, where the Houthis have previously warned that an Israeli presence in Somaliland would be considered a military target.

Mohamud also accused the Houthis of destabilising the region and disrupting navigation through Bab al-Mandab, placing Somalia’s concerns over both Israel and the Yemeni group within the broader security contest surrounding the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

Mogadishu maintains that the Federal Government is the only authority legally empowered to enter international military and security agreements involving Somali territory.

Somalia has strongly opposed Israel’s recognition of Somaliland, which was announced in December 2025. Israel became the first UN member state to recognise Somaliland, which declared independence from Somalia in 1991 but which Mogadishu considers an integral part of the country.

For Somalia, the prospect of an Israeli military presence in Berbera raises both sovereignty and security concerns, particularly as conflicts involving Israel, Iran and the Houthis increasingly intersect with the strategic waterways surrounding the Horn of Africa.