Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was personally warned by United Arab Emirates President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, known as MBZ, about a planned major Hamas offensive roughly 10 days before the group’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, but did not pass the information to senior Israeli security officials or take action on it, Haaretz reported on Tuesday.
The report, based on a new book titled Kidnapped: 843 Days of Abandonment by journalists Shlomi Eldar and Ruth Yuval, said three senior foreign officials were briefed on the contents of a 45-minute phone call between Netanyahu and MBZ in late September 2023. Haaretz cited an adviser to MBZ who had direct knowledge of the conversation.
According to the report, MBZ told Netanyahu that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was planning a major operation against Israel that could result in significant bloodshed, destabilise the region and potentially threaten the Abraham Accords, the agreements that normalised relations between Israel and several Arab states.
Netanyahu reportedly responded calmly, telling MBZ that Israel was closely monitoring the situation in Gaza. He suggested that any Hamas action was more likely to take place in the occupied West Bank and said Israel was prepared for any scenario, according to the report.
The warning had reportedly reached MBZ through a Fatah official who had been in contact with Sinwar. The Hamas leader was said to have been frustrated by stalled negotiations over the release of prisoners and repeatedly warned the Fatah interlocutor of consequences if Israel failed to advance a deal.
“Tell the Israelis if they don’t advance, I’m preparing a huge surprise for them,” Sinwar was quoted as saying. “Tell them to expect an earthquake.”
On another occasion, Sinwar reportedly said he was preparing “a formidable operation”.
The Fatah official passed the information to an adviser to MBZ, who became concerned that the planned operation could have wider regional consequences. According to the adviser, the information was eventually conveyed directly to Israel’s Shin Bet security service in mid-September.
Israeli security officials held discussions about the warning but did not interpret it as indicating an imminent large-scale assault from Gaza, and no concrete decisions were taken, Haaretz reported.
The report said MBZ became concerned by the lack of an Israeli response and subsequently raised the issue directly with Netanyahu.
On October 1, Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar again proposed proactive measures against Hamas, including the possible assassination of senior Hamas leaders. Netanyahu did not make an immediate decision, instead asking the agency to present its proposals for consideration. According to the report, he did not disclose his conversation with MBZ.
“If we had known about the warnings, there’s a chance it would have given much greater weight to the initial message that reached us from Sinwar,” a senior Shin Bet official was quoted as saying.
The official said the additional information could also have helped Israeli officials understand Sinwar’s withdrawal from de-escalation talks in early September and potentially led to a different assessment of the intelligence picture.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office strongly rejected the report, calling it “a total lie”.
“Prime Minister Netanyahu did not speak with the president of the United Arab Emirates during the period in question and received no warning from him,” the office told Haaretz.
Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages, according to Israeli authorities. Israel subsequently launched a military campaign in Gaza that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and triggered a prolonged regional conflict.
Comments (0)