The Israeli PM reportedly secretly traveled to Abu Dhabi after claims that Mohamed bin Zayed had alerted him of the impending Hamas operation
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly secretly flew to the UAE to ask President Mohamed bin Zayed to deny that he had warned the Jewish state of a major Hamas threat ahead of the deadly October 7 attack.
Netanyahu has faced growing scrutiny over claims that he had received multiple warnings from regional countries in the run-up to the Hamas-led incursion, which killed around 1,200 people, saw 251 taken hostage, and which led to the Gaza war.
Netanyahu met bin Zayed for about an hour in Abu Dhabi on Sunday to ask the Emirati president to deny the warning claim, AP reported on Monday, citing two people briefed on the trip.
Haaretz first reported earlier this month that Emirati intelligence had alerted Israel’s Shin Bet security service to a possible major Hamas operation, prompting bin Zayed to call Netanyahu about ten days before the assault. The UAE president reportedly warned that the plan could lead to bloodshed and destabilize the region.
Netanyahu reportedly played down the threat, saying he believed Hamas was more likely to act in the occupied West Bank and that Israel was prepared. His office has rejected the Haaretz report as an “absolute lie,” insisting no such call took place.
Egypt reportedly also gave Israel advance warning. The Atlantic reported that then-intelligence chief Abbas Kamel traveled to Israel less than two weeks before the attack to alert officials that Hamas appeared to be preparing a major operation.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that Cairo had issued at least three warnings, including one to Netanyahu’s office just days before the incursion, and continued contacting Israel until roughly 48 hours before the attack. Netanyahu has denied receiving advance notice from Egypt.
Israeli intelligence had separately obtained a Hamas battle plan known as ‘Jericho Wall’, outlining a cross-border assault, attacks on military positions and hostage-taking. The New York Times later reported that the document closely resembled the October 7 attack, although Israeli officials have disputed how seriously it was taken and whether it was considered an imminent threat.
Former IDF chief of staff Dan Halutz has accused Netanyahu of concealing the warnings, saying the failure was “total, broad, and included everyone,” and that the prime minister bore ultimate responsibility.
Earlier this month, families of Israelis killed or abducted in the attack unveiled a 12-page dossier arguing that it was not simply an intelligence failure, but the result of a long-running policy under successive Netanyahu governments.
The controversy comes ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled for October 27. Netanyahu, who faces a challenge from former IDF chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot, has described the Haaretz report as “politically motivated” and part of the “left’s election campaign.”
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