Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a firm denial on Tuesday regarding claims that the United Arab Emirates had warned him of the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks. The rejection followed an article in the left-leaning newspaper Haaretz, which asserted that UAE President Mohammad bin Zayed had informed Netanyahu of an impending major operation ten days prior to the assault.
“No warning was given to the Prime Minister from the United Arab Emirates before October 7,” a statement from Netanyahu’s office read.
According to Haaretz, whose journalists authored the report based on a book excerpt, bin Zayed cautioned that Hamas and its leader at the time, Yahya Sinwar, were plotting a significant strike against Israel. During their conversation, the UAE president reportedly emphasized that such an operation could destabilize the Middle East and jeopardize the Abraham Accords, which normalized diplomatic ties between the UAE and Israel in 2021. At the time, indications suggested that Saudi Arabia and Israel were also close to formalizing their own relations.
The report added that Netanyahu responded with “relative calm” to the intelligence, telling bin Zayed that Israel was prepared for any scenario and that he considered an attack originating from the West Bank more likely than one from Gaza. The Times of Israel also confirmed the report on Tuesday, citing an Emirati source who corroborated that bin Zayed had provided the warning.
The UAE’s Foreign Ministry stopped short of explicitly confirming the specifics of the report but stated that “when necessary, all relevant intelligence has been and continue to be communicated between the relevant entities.”
This disclosure follows a similar report from last year by Yedioth Ahronoth, which claimed Egyptian intelligence had alerted Israel that “something big is going to happen” shortly before the massacre.
The timing of these revelations has drawn sharp criticism from Netanyahu’s political rivals ahead of next month’s elections. Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the centrist Yashar party and former military chief, accused Netanyahu of leading Israel blindly into disaster. Eisenkot, who currently leads Netanyahu’s Likud party in the polls, has called for an official state commission of inquiry into the October 7 failures, a proposal Netanyahu has rejected.
Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, also a candidate in the upcoming election, stated that Netanyahu bears “personal and direct responsibility” for the deaths of thousands of Israelis. Yair Golan, head of the center-left Democrats party, posted on X, saying, “You knew, you ignored, you failed, you are to blame.”
The October 7 attacks, which killed approximately 1,200 people and saw 251 hostages taken to Gaza, marked the deadliest day for Jewish people since the Holocaust. The subsequent Israeli military offensive in Gaza has resulted in the deaths of over 73,650 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry. A UN Commission of Inquiry last year found that Israel had committed genocide against Palestinians in the territory.
Interesting that Egypt also reportedly warned Israel. It seems regional partners were sounding alarms while Israeli leadership stayed silent.
1200 lives lost is a tragedy beyond politics. Regardless of who knew what, we need a transparent inquiry, not blame games.
Netanyahu’s office calls it a flat denial, but the sources are strong. This reeks of political protection ahead of elections.
The UAE denial is classic diplomatic hedging. They never confirm or deny outright, leaving everyone to speculate.
It is alarming how quickly intelligence warnings are dismissed. Why would Israel assume the West Bank was the only threat vector?