Cameroon–Israel Relations

The relationship combines formal diplomacy with security assistance, agricultural and vocational programs, trade, education, health initiatives, and community projects. Israel maintains an embassy in Yaoundé, while Cameroonian diplomatic representation in Israel was developed during the early 1990s.[8][9]

Its modern significance rests on both practical cooperation and diplomatic alignment. Security ties and MASHAV development programs operate alongside a Cameroonian voting pattern that has frequently favored abstention on contested Israel-related resolutions at the United Nations.[10][11]

Cameroon recognized Israel on September 15, 1960, shortly after gaining independence.[1] Israeli leaders signaled their interest in the continent from the outset, and Israeli foreign minister Golda Meir attended Cameroon's independence celebrations in October 1960.[12]

Rose Gisèle Ndo'o's 524-page French-language study of relations from 1959 to 2008 describes the beginning of institutional and technical cooperation around 1960, cooperation agreements from 1962, and technical cooperation from 1963 to 1973. Its cataloged contents include civic and vocational training centers, expert missions, and training for Cameroonian personnel in Israel.[2] A 2009 account by Cameroon's then-ambassador to Israel, Henri Etoundi Essomba, placed the relationship's roots before Cameroon's unification.[13]

Israel's development agency MASHAV was active in Cameroon during this period. Agriculture was a primary focus: Israeli experts taught irrigation courses around the country, particularly in the arid northwest, and Israel built a training center in Cameroon to help halt the advance of the Sahara Desert.[14] These early programs established a pattern of practical technical assistance that would characterize the relationship across subsequent decades.

The October 1973 Yom Kippur War fractured Israel's relationships across Africa, with dozens of African states severing diplomatic ties.[14][12] Sources differ slightly on Cameroon's date: the catalog for Ndo'o's study gives October 13, 1973, while Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi's historical table gives October 15.[2][3]

The catalog for Ndo'o's study outlines a cooling in cooperation from 1967 to 1984 and frames Cameroon's changing policy, along with the possible roles of France and Arab states, as subjects investigated in the book rather than conclusions independently established by the catalog.[2] Despite the formal break, Israel maintained an "interest officer" under the auspices of a foreign embassy in Cameroon, continuing practical unofficial contacts and economic relations.[12]

An archival item dated October 28, 1986, described the restoration of diplomatic relations as recent and as an important step in Israel's broader effort to renew ties with Africa.[15] The Library of Congress's Israel: A Country Study situates Cameroon's renewal within the wider resumption of African-Israeli relations following the 1978 Camp David Accords and the establishment of Egypt–Israel diplomatic relations.[14]

Sources give different dates for the formal restoration of relations. A 2010 report quoting Israel's ambassador to Cameroon, Miki Arbel, placed the resumption in 1984 and described Cameroon as among the first African states to renew ties after the 1973 rupture.[4] By contrast, Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi's 1987 table records August 26, 1986.[3] A United Nations Digital Library record separately catalogs a note verbale titled "Diplomatic Relations Between Cameroon and Israel as of 26 Aug. 1986," symbol NV/86/28; the catalog title does not by itself resolve the discrepancy between the two accounts.[16]

A prominent moment in the restored relationship came in 1986, when Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres flew to Cameroon.[15][17] The catalog for Ndo'o's study identifies the August visit as a turning point in the revival of cooperation.[2]

Israel maintains an embassy in Yaoundé.[18][8] A Jewish Virtual Library diplomatic-missions table, updated as of May 2016 and sourced to Israel's Foreign Ministry, lists the Yaoundé embassy under the status "Renewal," dated August 1991.[8] Cameroon's ambassador Etoundi Essomba described being sent to Israel as chargé d'affaires in the early 1990s to establish Cameroon's chancery and prepare for its first ambassador. His initial assignment lasted five years before he became the first Cameroonian ambassador to Israel.[9]

Security cooperation has formed a central pillar of the Cameroon–Israel relationship. Historical and recent reports describe Israeli training or involvement with elite forces responsible for presidential security.[14][6] Israel also supplied large weapons systems to Cameroon during 2006–2010, according to SIPRI data cited by the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), and an INSS country report lists Cardom mortars delivered in 2007.[10][19] Photographic evidence reviewed by INSS shows Israeli-made Improved Galil, Uzi, and Tavor rifles, as well as Negev machine guns, in service with Cameroonian forces.[10]

The depth of Israeli military influence gave rise to a striking piece of nomenclature: INSS reports that a Cameroonian national-guard unit was nicknamed "the Israeli unit," without identifying the formation or giving a date.[10] Israel has also reportedly provided military assistance to elite Cameroonian forces that report directly to the presidency.[5]

Multiple sources describe Israeli involvement with Cameroon's Rapid Intervention Battalion (BIR), an elite presidential unit. A 2020 Times of Israel report, drawing on The Guardian and Jeune Afrique, stated that an elite section of the BIR was trained by Israel, equipped with Israeli and U.S. equipment, and created with Israeli participation. It also reported that a retired Mossad officer, Colonel Meyuhas, supervised President Paul Biya's presidential guard.[20] A 2025 report described Israeli ambassador Ran Gidor visiting the International School of Security Forces at Awae to explore possible cooperation and said Israeli expertise had benefited members of Cameroon's presidential guard.[21] These claims remain attributed to the secondary outlets that reported them rather than to official Israeli or Cameroonian statements.

A petition filed in Israel by attorney Itai Mack and 76 human-rights activists asked the High Court of Justice to direct the Defense Ministry to halt security-export licenses relating to the BIR. The petition was filed approximately a year before being reported in 2019, and a publication ban requested by the Defense Ministry prevented reporting on its outcome.[22] INSS has also noted that private Israeli security firms and businesspeople have operated in security-related contexts in Cameroon, cautioning that such activity may not reflect Israeli government policy and may damage Israel's image.[10]

The security relationship carries strategic weight beyond Cameroon's borders. The Cameroonian army, previously trained by Israeli advisers and equipped with Israeli-manufactured materiel, cooperated with Nigerian forces in counter-terrorism operations, creating an indirect Israeli contribution to regional security efforts.[10] A 2025 Maariv report also said Israel had trained Cameroon's rapid-intervention forces and was involved with a special unit responsible for presidential security; it added that the relationship had brought Cameroon support from the United States.[6]

Israel's international development agency, MASHAV, has run programs in Cameroon across agriculture, education, community development, gender issues, regional planning, and small-business development. A regional activity summary lists 59 participants in Israel: 42 in agriculture, five in community development, three each in gender issues, education, and small and medium enterprises, two in rural and urban development, and one in regional planning. It separately lists one on-the-spot agricultural course in Cameroon.[23]

Agriculture has been the dominant focus. As of 2010, Israeli assistance centered primarily on irrigation methods and water management, with Israeli experts delivering irrigation courses throughout Cameroon and placing particular emphasis on the arid northwest.[4] A 2025 report described an Israeli agricultural technical team as expected to travel to northern Cameroon to train farmers in drip irrigation, framing the visit as prospective rather than completed.[21] Ambassador Ran Gidor also said Cameroon's National Assembly president had expressed strong interest in Israeli agricultural practices and expertise.[21]

Beyond agriculture, bilateral development cooperation has expanded into other areas. Cameroon's ambassador Etoundi Essomba noted in 2009 an agreement between the Technion and Cameroon Polytechnic to upgrade the polytechnic's engineering capacity, while Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya'alon said Israel had been chosen to assist in increasing Cameroon's poultry production.[13] A 2020 meeting between Cameroon's employment and vocational-training minister, Issa Tchiroma Bakary, and Israel's ambassador, Isi Yanouka, discussed possible Israeli assistance in constructing vocational centers and deploying experts to train young Cameroonians in skills meeting international standards.[20]

MASHAV also engaged Cameroon in a regional pesticide-governance initiative. After a 2009 professional visit by the Permanent Secretary of the Central Africa Inter-State Pesticides Committee, MASHAV designed a course on pesticide registration and identification for professionals from CEMAC member states. Cooperation continued in 2010 toward establishing a pesticide-registration laboratory in Douala.[23]

During the 2014 West African Ebola outbreak, Israel announced that it would send three Israeli-manufactured mobile health clinics meeting World Health Organization standards, with Israeli medical experts overseeing operations and training local professionals. Cameroon was named among the countries that received the clinics or related aid, although the source does not specify which form of assistance Cameroon received.[24] Israel's overall contribution to the Ebola response included a pledge of $8.75 million and the deployment of trained medical staff.[24] Israeli assistance also reportedly trained staff at six Cameroonian hospitals in connection with Ebola preparations.[20]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Israel's embassy in Cameroon coordinated the donation of a 3D-printing file for face masks developed by Israeli developers from the Center for Excellence and Science in Emek Hefer. The masks were to be printed at the technology-training center of Yaoundé Polytechnic School; the embassy covered the first 100 masks at a reported cost of $2,500, and the United Nations sponsored the initiative. The masks were intended for medical teams and hospitals across Cameroon, including the terror-affected north.[25] Ambassador Izi Yanuka said: "The project in Cameroon combines Israeli knowledge with building advanced technological capacity," adding that Israel continued assisting its African friends while confronting the pandemic at home.[25]

Bilateral trade between Cameroon and Israel has remained modest in the available reporting. As of 2010, total trade stood at just under $15 million and consisted primarily of semi-processed wood imported from Cameroon and heavy machinery and irrigation equipment exported from Israel.[4] The same report described Israeli business investment in Cameroon's telecommunications sector.[4]

A 2009 account by Cameroon's ambassador credited Israel with assisting Cameroon's development in agriculture and medicine and described cooperation as expanding into technology and communications.[13] The available sources do not provide a more recent comprehensive bilateral trade figure.

Israel's embassy in Yaoundé has pursued educational and community-building programs alongside its diplomatic functions. In the years preceding 2026, the embassy promoted robotics and mathematics competitions for students, donated computers and advanced technology equipment to Cameroonian institutions, and established a multimedia laboratory named for Jerusalem at a local university.[26]

The embassy also supported sports programs. Equipment was distributed to children at a football academy, and a table-tennis club for young people was inaugurated and named for Kibbutz Be'eri, with equipment and support from the Israeli mission.[26] In late November 2016, eleven African diplomats representing seven countries, including Cameroon, met Israeli government officials, visited the Western Wall and the City of David, and attended meetings with Israeli officials and Knesset members.[27]

Cameroon's Jewish congregation is small and consists mostly of people from Israel; holiday services are held at the Israeli ambassador's residence in Yaoundé.[18] The embassy also held an event marking 40 years of official relations between Israel and Cameroon.[26]

Cameroon's voting record at the United Nations General Assembly is one of the most visible markers of its diplomatic orientation toward Israel. During the decade preceding 2018, Cameroon recorded almost three times as many abstentions on recurring Israel-related resolutions as any other African country, according to an American Jewish Committee analysis. The analysis does not provide an exact count or enumerate the resolutions.[11]

The Washington Institute for Near East Policy compared three specific votes and found that Cameroon abstained in December 2017 on a resolution concerning the relocation of the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, in December 2023 on an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, and in September 2025 on a vote endorsing the New York Declaration on a two-state solution.[7] The source cautions that General Assembly votes are nonbinding and often performative and that voting patterns do not necessarily capture the substance of pragmatic bilateral relationships.[7]

Following Hamas's October 7, 2023 terrorist attack, Cameroon was among the African countries that condemned the atrocities.[28] On October 27 and December 12, 2023, Cameroon abstained on General Assembly resolutions calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.[28] Cameroon and Zambia, both described as countries close to Israel, did not vote on the related Western-sponsored amendments condemning Hamas; their participation could have affected whether the amendments reached the required two-thirds majority.[28] Cameroon also abstained on General Assembly resolutions in 2024 concerning a possible Gaza ceasefire and a peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine.[5]

As of September 2025, Cameroon was one of only two of the African Union's 54 member states that had not recognized the State of Palestine.[6] A 2025 Maariv report linked Cameroon's position partly to its close relations with Israel and partly to its internal conflict in the English-speaking regions, suggesting that Palestinian recognition could intensify pressure to recognize the separatist movement there. This was an interpretation advanced by the report, not an official rationale announced by either government.[6]

In September 2026, Israeli ambassador to Cameroon Amnon Kalmar received the Grand Officer decoration on behalf of President Paul Biya.[26] Cameroon's foreign minister described the honor as reserved for individuals whose exceptional service and contribution merited the Cameroonian nation's highest recognition. Senior ministers attended the ceremony, which Maariv characterized as an unusual gesture toward a foreign diplomat.[26]

Upon receiving the award, Kalmar called Cameroon "a true friend of the State of Israel" and said that Israel was regarded there as "a brand of success." He described the decoration as evidence of a shared aspiration to deepen ties and open additional avenues for cooperation.[26] The award followed a sustained period of embassy-led civilian, humanitarian, educational, and technology programming in Cameroon.

Several aspects of the Cameroon–Israel relationship have attracted criticism or remain contested. The most serious concerns surround Israeli security assistance to Cameroon's Rapid Intervention Battalion, which press reports have linked to operations in Cameroon's English-speaking regions following protests that began in October 2016. A 2019 N12 report said dozens of people interviewed alleged that Israelis had established, trained, and equipped the BIR and that Cameroonians referred to it as the "Israeli unit." A petition before Israel's High Court of Justice sought to halt relevant security-export licenses, but a publication ban prevented reporting on its outcome.[22] The allegations remain claims reported by the outlet rather than independently adjudicated findings available in the cited material.

In February 2019, Cameroon's Minister Delegate in the Ministry of Justice, Jean de Dieu Momo, made a state-media comparison between the opposition Cameroon Renaissance Movement and Jews who were "crushed by Hitler because of arrogance." Israel expressed outrage; Cameroon's Minister of External Relations met the Israeli ambassador to apologize, and government spokesman Rene Sadi said the government deplored and disassociated itself from the remarks. No sanctions against Momo were announced in the cited reporting.[18][20]

Private Israeli security firms and businesspeople have also operated in Cameroon in security-related capacities. INSS cautions that such private activity may not reflect Israeli government policy and may damage Israel's image; the source does not identify the firms or specific Cameroonian operations.[10]

Finally, sources disagree on the date when Cameroon formally restored diplomatic relations with Israel. A 2010 report quoting Israel's ambassador gives 1984.[4] Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi's 1987 table gives August 26, 1986, while a United Nations catalog record lists a note verbale concerning relations "as of" that date.[3][16] The available sources do not conclusively reconcile the discrepancy.