Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed his lawyers to file a defamation lawsuit against the newspaper Haaretz, journalist Shlomi Eldar, and others over claims that the United Arab Emirates had warned him prior to the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led massacre. The report stated that UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan had alerted Netanyahu to an impending major attack by Hamas.
According to Netanyahu, reviews conducted by the Prime Minister’s Office, the National Security Council, and the military secretariat found no record of a conversation between him and the UAE President from the period between early September and Oct. 7, 2023. Furthermore, entry records reportedly showed no visit by an Emirati representative, who Netanyahu stated would have been necessary to facilitate such a call.
Netanyahu characterized the Haaretz report as a "malicious fabrication" and suggested it was intended to deflect criticism from what he described as failures by then-Israel Security Agency Chief Ronen Bar and then-Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi. He blamed them for not acting on prior warning signs or alerting him in a timely manner.
The Haaretz report, citing unnamed senior foreign sources, detailed that bin Zayed had informed Netanyahu of Hamas's plan for a major attack approximately 10 days before the invasion of the northwestern Negev. The report also suggested that the Israeli leader reacted with "relative calm" to this information.
Netanyahu's office had previously denied the report on the day it was published. The UAE's Ministry of Foreign Affairs declined to confirm or deny the alleged conversation. A statement from the ministry posted on X indicated that the UAE government does not comment on media stories or speculation regarding conversations between government leaders. The ministry added that the UAE's engagement since October 7 has consistently focused on de-escalation, regional stability, and preventing violence. It also stated that UAE and Israeli government entities have maintained open communication channels since the inception of their relationship more than five years ago, and relevant intelligence continues to be communicated between entities when necessary.