Israeli Foreign Ministry says embassy reopening part of broader effort to strengthen ties with African countries
Israel reopened its embassy in Zambia on Wednesday after more than five decades of closure, Israeli media reported.
The mission was inaugurated by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar in Lusaka alongside Zambia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Mulambo Haimbe, the daily Yedioth Ahronoth said.
“This is the beginning of a new chapter between the countries,” Saar said.
During the ceremony, the two ministers signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation.
“We signed a memorandum of understanding on bilateral consultations and are enhancing our partnership in agriculture, health, and many other areas,” Saar wrote on the US social media platform X.
Israel previously operated an embassy in Zambia during the 1960s and 1970s, but closed it as part of a wider reduction of Israeli diplomatic missions in Africa at the time.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said the embassy reopening was “part of a broader effort to strengthen and expand ties with African countries.”
Saar’s visit to Zambia comes amid broader Israeli efforts to expand its influence in Africa through intensified diplomatic visits and development projects.
However, Tel Aviv continues to face criticism from African countries, particularly Algeria and South Africa, over its ongoing genocidal war in Gaza and broader treatment of Palestinians.
In February 2024, Israel was expelled from the African Union and stripped of its observer status after prior tensions over Israeli representation at AU meetings.
The Israeli army has pursued a brutal assault on the Gaza Strip since October 2023, killing at least 62,122 people and injuring more than 156,700 others, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
