Somalia’s Defense Minister Ahmed Moalim Fiqi has accused Israel of planning to relocate Palestinians to Somaliland, calling the alleged plan a serious violation of international law. He made the remarks in an interview with Al Jazeera, stating that Somalia had confirmed information about Israel’s intention to transfer Palestinians to the breakaway region. Israel recently recognized Somaliland as an independent state.

Both Israel and Somaliland have denied the accusation. Somaliland, which declared independence from Somalia in 1991, has not been recognized by the United Nations. Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar told Israel’s Channel 14 last week that the forced relocation of Palestinians to Somaliland was not part of any agreement between the two sides.

Sa’ar added that Israel and Somaliland have many areas of cooperation, including politics, security, and development, but insisted that population transfer was not among them.