Israel’s Cabinet on Sunday, April 26, unanimously approved the appointment of Michael Lotem as the Jewish state’s first ambassador to Somaliland. Lotem, a senior diplomat, was announced as Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar’s pick for the post on April 15. He finished a three-year tour as ambassador to Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, and the Seychelles in August 2025, and has since served as a non-resident economic ambassador to Africa.
Lotem had previously served as ambassador to Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan. The posting will initially be non-resident—Lotem will be based in Jerusalem rather than in Somaliland, managing the bilateral relationship through visits and direct engagement. The cabinet’s unanimous approval follows the Ministerial Committee on Diplomatic Appointments’ previous endorsement of the nomination, as Foreign Minister Sa’ar moves to operationalize the historic relationship.
The appointment marks a significant step following the establishment of official relations between Israel and Somaliland in December 2025, when Israel became the first United Nations member state to recognize Somaliland as an independent state. A Sunni-majority country, Somaliland practices tolerance and has expressed support for Israel and the Abraham Accords, the US-brokered 2020 deal between Israel and several Muslim states. Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in 1991 and has been pursuing international recognition both in Africa and abroad.
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