United Arab Emirates President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about a planned Hamas operation days before the October 7, 2023 attack, according to a report by Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
According to the report, the UAE president spoke with Netanyahu about 10 days before the Hamas-led attack, warning that Yahya Sinwar, who was then leading the group in Gaza, was preparing an operation that could result in heavy casualties and further unsettle the region.
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Bin Zayed also reportedly warned that such an attack could threaten the Abraham Accords, the US-brokered agreements under which Israel normalised diplomatic relations with the UAE and other Arab countries.
According to Haaretz, Netanyahu responded relatively calmly during the conversation and told the UAE president that Israel was prepared for any scenario.
He reportedly suggested, however, that if an attack were to take place, it was more likely to originate in the occupied West Bank.
Netanyahu's office has strongly rejected the report, calling the claim that he received a warning from bin Zayed before October 7 an "absolute lie".
The report comes amid renewed scrutiny over how Israel's political and security establishment failed to anticipate the Hamas assault, despite intelligence warnings and signs of militant preparations.
Hamas fighters launched the October 7 attack from Gaza, killing around 1,200 people in Israel and taking about 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures. The assault triggered Israel's military war in Gaza and a wider regional crisis.
The reported conversation, if substantiated, could add to questions surrounding what Israeli leaders knew about Hamas' preparations in the days leading up to the attack.
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