The Islamic Republic of Mauritania, one of only three Arab League member states that had recognized Israel, has now cut off all diplomatic ties with the Jewish State.
Last year, Mauritania recalled its ambassador to Israel, expelled the Israeli Ambassador in its own country, and asked Israel to close its embassy. This weekend, Mauritania’s Foreign Minister Naha Mint Hamdi Ould Mouknass said, "Let everyone here know, Mauritania has broken its diplomatic relations with the State of Israel in a complete and definitive way."
The relations with the northwestern African country were severed following Israel’s three-week anti-terrorism Operation Cast Lead that ended in January 2009. The offensive, which came in response to thousands of Hamas rockets fired at Israeli towns over the course of eight years, sparked protests in many Arab and Muslim nations. These included Mauritania, where tens of thousands of people took to the streets of the capital city of Nouakchott in protest.
Mauritania’s population of 3.3 million is 100% Muslim. Its per-capita GDP is only $1,042 per year, and only 51.2% of its population is literate.
Mauritania established diplomatic relations with Israel in October 1999, several months after Israel announced its first project there: an eye clinic operated by the Foreign Ministry's Center for International Cooperation (MASHAV). The civilian government of Mauritania was overthrown in August 2008, in a military coup led by General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, who now heads the country. The coup was supported by Morocco, Libya and Iran, while the United States, France and other European countries criticized the coup.