The Israeli government has asked Ethiopia to cooperate in combating terrorism in the Middle East and Africa, describing terrorism as a common enemy for both countries.
At a press conference in Jerusalem by Israeli and Ethiopian Foreign Ministers Gideon Sa’ar and Gedion Timotheos, Sa’ar said that there is a connection between the Al-Shabaab and Houthis groups that are at war with Israel, and therefore it is necessary for the two countries to cooperate in combating them.
“Terrorism is a common threat, we see extremist groups in the region such as Hamas, Hezbollah, Syrian jihadists and Al-Shabaab. Terrorism must be eradicated,” Sa’ar said, as reported by The Times of Israel.
He said that Ethiopia plays a major role in the fight against Al-Shabaab, and that the Houthis pose a threat to Israel’s security and trade routes in the Red Sea, seeing the alleged link between Al-Shabaab and the Houthis as a threat, and believing that both groups should be fought together.
Israel sees a threat to the recent US-reported link between the Al-Shabaab group, which is part of the Al-Qaeda organization, and the Houthis in Yemen, who are angry about Israel’s war on Gaza and who have been attacking Israeli commercial ships.
Similarly, Ethiopia, one of the landlocked countries that trade through the Red Sea, sees the Houthis as a threat, and has repeatedly stated that Addis Ababa is important in playing a role in Red Sea security.
The governments of Israel and Ethiopia have said they are further strengthening their cooperative relations. Sa’ar said that relations between Ethiopia and Israel date back to biblical times, and a Jewish community lives in Ethiopia.
