Egypt Warned Israel of Gaza "Explosion" Days Before Oct. 7

Egypt's intelligence chief secretly visited Israel 11 days before the October 7th Hamas attack and warned of a significant escalation in Gaza, according to an Atlantic magazine investigation. General Abbas Kamel reportedly conveyed that if Israel did not change its policies towards Gaza, "Gaza will explode in your faces," and recommended economic concessions to Hamas to prevent an outbreak.

The visit, which lasted about an hour and occurred shortly before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech marking the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War, was brief, with Kamel's plane reportedly staying in Israel for only 67 minutes. Despite the dire warning, Kamel did not provide specific details about the timing, target, or operational aspects of the impending attack, and it remains unclear to whom exactly in Israel the message was delivered.

According to the report, Egyptian warnings continued even closer to the attack date. On October 5th, just two days before the massacre, Egypt sent another message to Israel about the potential for an escalation in the Strip. Jordan also conveyed similar messages, according to Arab sources.

The United States also detected signs of deterioration, with the CIA issuing assessments in late September and early October indicating Hamas might conduct operations, including rocket fire, though these did not predict the full scale of the October 7th assault.

Separately, the UAE's President, Mohammed bin Zayed, warned Prime Minister Netanyahu in late September that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was planning a "significant move" against Israel. Bin Zayed reportedly urged Netanyahu to act on the threat, but the Prime Minister responded with relative calm, believing Hamas intended to act in the West Bank and that Israel was prepared for any scenario. The conversation between Netanyahu and bin Zayed lasted 45 minutes, during which the UAE president expressed concern that the event could lead to bloodshed and destabilize the entire region, potentially harming the Abraham Accords.