Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses lawmakers in the Knesset, Israel's parliament, in Jerusalem on November 10, 2025. (AP Photo)
United Arab Emirates President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu days before the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack that the Palestinian group was preparing a major operation against Israel, according to a Haaretz investigation published on Sept. 8.
Netanyahu reportedly dismissed the warning despite the UAE leader urging him to take the threat seriously, the newspaper said, citing three senior foreign officials familiar with the conversation.
During a 45-minute phone call held roughly 10 days before the attack, the UAE leader told Netanyahu that then-Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was preparing a large-scale operation against Israel.
The UAE president reportedly cautioned that such an attack could result in heavy casualties, destabilize the region and jeopardize the Abraham Accords, according to the report.
Netanyahu, however, reportedly said he believed Hamas was preparing to carry out an operation in the West Bank and assured him that Israel was ready to respond to any possible scenario.
The Israeli prime minister allegedly failed to relay the president’s warning during subsequent security briefings ahead of the attack.
Former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar and former IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi both told Haaretz that they had not been informed of the warning.
Following the report, Israeli opposition figures accused Netanyahu of being unfit to serve as prime minister.
