111: How Somaliland and Israel became fast friends, with Amb. Mohamed Hagi
Ask Haviv Anything
Haviv Rettig Gur
4.9 • 1K Ratings
🗓️ 29 April 2026
⏱️ 36 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
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In a world where recognition is said to be a precondition for legitimacy, Somaliland built one of Africa's most surprising success stories without stopping to ask for the world's charity or permission.
In this episode, Haviv sits down with Ambassador Mohamed Hagi, Somaliland’s first envoy to Israel and a key architect of Israel's recognition of his country, to explore one of the most unlikely and revealing relationships in global politics. We talk about a country that built a democracy out of the ruins of a terrible war, built stable and competent institutions without international support, and is now stepping onto the world stage on its own terms.
What does it mean when a deeply Muslim society embraces partnership with Israel? Why does Somaliland succeed where formally recognized states fail? And how does a small country navigate geopolitics, identity and survival in one of the most strategically fraught and vital corners of the world?
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Thank you to the anonymous sponsor who asked to dedicate this episode to the victims of October 7.
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Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi everybody. Welcome to Ask Khaliv Anything. I'm extremely excited today to be introducing |
| 0:09.7 | Ambassador Muhammad Hajjee as Somaliland's first ambassador to Israel. We're thrilled to have |
| 0:15.6 | him on the podcast and we're going to be diving into this brand new, fascinating relationship. Before we get into it, |
| 0:22.0 | I want to tell you that this episode is sponsored by an anonymous sponsor who asked to dedicate it |
| 0:26.9 | to the victims of October 7, simple, anonymous, and we're very grateful for that support. |
| 0:32.5 | I also would like to invite everyone to join our Patreon community. It helps us keep this project going. |
| 0:38.3 | We need your support. If you are interested in asking the questions that guide the topics we talk about, |
| 0:43.0 | that's the place where you do it. And also you get to take part in our monthly live streams |
| 0:48.5 | where I answer your questions live. We have a great time over there. Please join us at www. |
| 0:53.9 | patreon.com slash ask Chaviv. |
| 0:56.3 | Anything that link is in the show notes. |
| 0:59.7 | Mr. Ambassador, how are you? |
| 1:02.1 | I'm fine. Thank you very much. |
| 1:04.0 | Thanks for having me here. |
| 1:06.4 | Thank you so much for coming on. |
| 1:08.6 | Let's start with just tell us a bit about yourself. |
| 1:12.4 | Beyond the education in Britain, ambassador to Taiwan, where do you come from in Somaliland? |
| 1:18.8 | Where are you from? It seems like if you go from Taiwan to Israel, you like complicated and sensitive postings and policies. |
| 1:26.7 | And I've been reading about your work. |
| 1:29.3 | You're not just an ambassador in the simple sense |
| 1:32.9 | that other countries might just have a career ambassador. |
| 1:35.9 | You helped build this relationship. |
... |
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