Netanyahu's Secret UAE Trip Linked to Military Escalation, Analysts Say

In this episode

The stories Maya and Daniel cover, in order. Each one opens the full story.

1. Netanyahu's Secret UAE Trip Linked to Military Escalation, Analysts Say
2. Israel Imposes West Bank Closure During Sukkot Holiday
3. Dozens of Israelis Stranded in Nepal Amidst Deadly Landslides and Floods
4. IDF Releases Dramatic Footage of Hostage Rescuer's Elimination
5. Egyptian Intelligence Chief Warned Netanyahu of Impending Hamas Attack Before Oct. 7
6. Ex-Hamas Guard Granted UK Asylum, Accused of Plotting Terror Attacks in Europe

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Transcript

Maya

The Prime Minister slipped off to the Gulf, and nobody saw him go.

Daniel

And now everyone in the region is trying to work out why.

Maya

This is Good Morning, Israel from baba News. It's Monday, September twenty-eighth. I'm Maya.

Daniel

And I'm Daniel.

Maya

So, Daniel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a secret trip to the United Arab Emirates to meet the Emirati president. What do we actually know?

Daniel

That the meeting happened, and that it was kept quiet. What's getting attention is how Arab commentators are reading it.

Maya

Which is?

Daniel

They see it as security coordination ahead of some kind of regional escalation. Maybe a military move timed around the U S midterm elections, or something to get ahead of a possible Iranian attack.

Maya

So that's analysis, not an announcement.

Daniel

Exactly. It's interpretation. Nobody in Jerusalem or Abu Dhabi has confirmed any of it.

Maya

Still, a secret face-to-face with a Gulf leader isn't nothing.

Daniel

No. The U A E is one of the countries that normalized ties with Israel. When those two leaders meet quietly, and Iran is the backdrop, people pay attention.

Maya

And what comes next?

Daniel

Watch for any official readout, and for signals from Washington. If there's real coordination going on, it usually shows up there first.

Maya

Staying with the Emirates, because there's a twist here. A new report looks back at the warnings Israel may have had before October seventh.

Daniel

Right. According to the report, Egypt's intelligence chief at the time, Abbas Kamel, warned Prime Minister Netanyahu in early October twenty twenty-three that Hamas was planning an attack from Gaza.

Maya

And that wasn't the first warning, according to the report.

Daniel

No, it says it came after earlier warnings that weren't acted on. And it describes a separate warning from the Emirati president too.

Maya

Which brings us right back to the man Netanyahu just met.

Daniel

It does. Netanyahu has denied receiving that warning from the U A E president.

Maya

Why does this keep coming back?

Daniel

Because the question of who knew what before October seventh is still one of the most painful arguments in Israeli politics. It's about accountability for the deadliest day in the country's history. And an election is coming.

Maya

Let's talk about that election, because it got a very Israeli piece of news this week. The ballot letters.

Daniel

For listeners abroad, this needs a word of explanation. In Israel you don't tick a box next to a name. You pick up a slip of paper printed with a party's Hebrew letters and drop it in an envelope.

Maya

So the letters are basically the brand.

Daniel

Exactly. And the Central Elections Committee, the body that runs the vote, has now approved the letters for the parties running.

Maya

Who got what they asked for?

Daniel

Likud, Netanyahu's party, got its chosen letters. So did Otzma Yehudit, the far-right Jewish Power party, and the Religious Zionist Party.

Maya

And not everyone was that lucky.

Daniel

Some requests were turned down because of religious concerns. And some parties are still waiting on the Supreme Court to decide.

Maya

Only in Israel does the alphabet need a court ruling.

Daniel

Well, it's a lot of letters to fight over.

Maya

Now, a worrying one far from home. Dozens of Israeli tourists are stuck in a mountain village in Nepal.

Daniel

Severe landslides and flooding have hit Nepal and northern India, and at least seventy people have been killed across both countries.

Maya

And the Israelis?

Daniel

They're trapped in that village. Rescue efforts are underway, but conditions are making it hard to get them out right away.

Maya

Nepal is a big destination for young Israelis, isn't it?

Daniel

Huge. A lot of them go trekking there after their army service. So when disaster hits Nepal, families in Israel are glued to their phones.

Maya

Hopefully we'll have better news on that tomorrow.

Maya

Next, the I D F has released footage connected to one of the best-known hostage stories of the war.

Daniel

Yes. The I D F released dramatic color footage showing the elimination of the Hamas terrorist who abducted Noa Argamani.

Maya

Remind people who she is.

Daniel

Noa Argamani was kidnapped by Hamas on October seventh. The video of her being carried off became one of the defining images of that day. She was rescued on June eighth, after two hundred and thirty-seven days in captivity.

Maya

Two hundred and thirty-seven days.

Daniel

And now the military has shown what became of the man who took her.

Maya

Another security story with a European angle. A man accused of plotting terror attacks against Jewish and Israeli targets in Europe has been arrested in London.

Daniel

And his background is remarkable. He's identified as Mohammed A. He's a former bodyguard of the late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, and the son of Hamas official Basem Naim.

Maya

And he'd been given asylum in Britain.

Daniel

Asylum, and then British citizenship. He's accused of leading the plot, and he was arrested on a German warrant.

Maya

So a former Hamas bodyguard with a British passport.

Daniel

Right. And that's the question Israel keeps raising with European governments. Who's being let in, and what do they do once they're there.

Maya

Now a quick round. Defense Minister Israel Katz has ordered a general closure of the West Bank for Sukkot.

Daniel

Sukkot is the week-long Jewish harvest festival, when families eat in temporary huts. During the closure, Palestinian workers can't enter Israeli communities in the West Bank.

Maya

Is that unusual?

Daniel

Not at all. It's a routine security step around the Jewish holidays. And with the restrictions already in place since October seventh, the practical effect is expected to be limited.

Maya

And a diplomatic spat with the Netherlands.

Daniel

Israel has revoked the diplomatic status of Dutch diplomats based in Ramallah, the seat of the Palestinian Authority. It's a response to Dutch sanctions on Israeli communities in the West Bank.

Maya

And this isn't the first time.

Daniel

No. Israel did the same with British diplomats after London banned imports of goods from those communities.

Maya

So the message to Europe is pretty clear.

Daniel

If you sanction Israelis, Israel will respond in kind.

Maya

So, what to watch. The rescue effort in Nepal. The hope is that the Israelis stuck in that village are reached and brought out soon, and we'll update you tomorrow.

Daniel

And keep an eye on the Supreme Court as well. Some parties are still waiting to find out which letters they'll get on the ballot.

Maya

Follow Good Morning, Israel so tomorrow's episode is waiting for you.

Daniel

See you tomorrow morning.