Israel Recognizes Somaliland: A New Partner for Old Tactics?
The New Arab reports the Arab League and GCC rejecting Israel's alleged recognition of Somaliland, citing violations of international law. This diplomatic dust-up, however, is less about Somaliland's sovereignty and more about Israel’s consistent strategy of leveraging regional fragmentation. Israel’s historical modus operandi has involved forging alliances with non-Arab or peripheral states to
counter broader Arab consensus, recalling its earlier ties with Iran under the Shah or its arms deals with Ethiopia during the Cold War. It’s a classic divide-and-conquer strategy, now played on the Horn of Africa, to secure strategic Red Sea access and, perhaps, an eventual UN vote. Critics might charitably call it 'adaptive foreign policy'; cynics, however, recognize it as a persistent disregard
for established international norms when politically convenient. One has to wonder how loudly the UN will object when a permanent Security Council member needs Israel's vote on some unrelated matter. Apparently, international law is more of a suggestion than a rule when power brokers are involved.