Netanyahu to Sue Haaretz Newspaper Over UAE Warning Report

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed his lawyers to file a defamation lawsuit against the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, journalist Shlomi Eldar, and other parties. The legal action stems from a Haaretz report alleging that Netanyahu received a warning from the President of the United Arab Emirates about a potential attack prior to the October 7th Hamas assault.

Netanyahu's office vehemently denies the report, calling it a "false fabrication that never happened." According to the Prime Minister's office, a thorough review of Netanyahu's call logs and entry records from September to October 7th revealed no documentation of any meeting or conversation with the UAE President. The office further stated that diplomatic calls with the UAE President are conducted via a special encrypted device brought by an Emirati representative to the Prime Minister's office and are always documented.

Haaretz's report, citing Eldar, suggested the conversation occurred through this representative and encrypted device. However, the Prime Minister's office asserted that entry logs showed no such Emirati representative visited the premises during the period in question, emphasizing that entry into the compound is strictly documented by security personnel.

Netanyahu also dismissed a separate claim that Egypt had warned him of an impending attack, stating this had already been refuted earlier in the war. He characterized these publications as part of a "malicious fabrication with clear political timing," intended to divert attention from the security establishment's conduct in the hours leading up to the attack. The Prime Minister reiterated his claim that former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar and former IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi had seen signs indicating the impending Hamas attack hours before it began but failed to inform him, suggesting that timely action could have prevented the massacre.