Hargeisa, Somalia — Israel deployed special forces to Somaliland during its war with Iran, according to a CNN report published on Friday, naming the self-declared republic in northern Somalia among several locations used in a wider covert regional network.
The report, citing four sources familiar with the matter, said Mossad agents and elite Israeli military units were also sent to Azerbaijan, the United Arab Emirates and Iraq.
CNN said Israel maintained covert sites and operational bases that supported intelligence-gathering missions, drone operations and other activities during the conflict with Iran.
The report said Israel established some of the facilities with the knowledge of host authorities, while others may have operated without their knowledge. It did not say whether Somaliland authorities knew about the alleged Israeli positions.
Somaliland’s government did not immediately respond to the CNN report.
Somaliland, Israel ties
Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in 1991 but remained without formal recognition from any UN member state until Israel recognised it in December.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, widely known as Irro, signed a declaration establishing full diplomatic relations.
