UAE Denies Warning Netanyahu About Hamas Attack Before Oct. 7

An official source in the United Arab Emirates has denied reports that UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan provided Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with an immediate warning about Hamas's impending attack on October 7. The Emirati source stated that the UAE discusses security issues through relevant channels and does not share such details at the leadership level. The report also suggested that the issue has become a focal point for Israeli politicians campaigning ahead of upcoming elections, using security as a central theme.

This denial comes after a report in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz two weeks prior, which claimed Netanyahu received explicit intelligence from Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar about a planned operation a week and a half before the October 7 massacre, and that he did not inform security chiefs. The Prime Minister's Office vehemently denied this, calling it a "complete lie" and stating Netanyahu did not speak with the UAE president during the relevant period nor receive any warning from him.

According to the original Haaretz investigation, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed called Netanyahu from the Presidential Palace in Abu Dhabi for a 45-minute conversation a week and a half before the Hamas attack. During this call, bin Zayed reportedly warned that Hamas leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, was planning a major move against Israel. The UAE president allegedly expressed concern that the event would not only lead to bloodshed but also destabilize the entire region and harm the Abraham Accords.