Netanyahu did not discuss UAE's October 7 warning at Gaza security meeting week of attack - report

The report comes as the prime minister, as well as UAE and US officials, deny allegations made in a Haaretz report that MBZ warned Netanyahu of a major Hamas attack in the days before Oct. 7, 2023.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not disclose an alleged warning from the UAE president that Hamas was planning a major attack during a Gaza security meeting held on October 1, 2023, six days before the October 7 massacre, The New York Times reported on Friday.

The report cited five former Israeli security officials, who further told the NYT that Netanyahu rejected suggestions from his security chiefs to strike Hamas leaders in Gaza who were directing terror attacks in the West Bank, saying instead that Israel should maintain calm amid a potential diplomatic agreement with Saudi Arabia.

According to the report, Netanyahu believed the Saudi-Israeli deal to be imminent, worrying that any IDF operations in Gaza would derail such a deal.

The NYT report follows an investigation published by Haaretz on September 8 alleging that UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (MBZ) warned Netanyahu that Hamas was planning a major operation against Israel in the days prior to the October 7 attack, with three foreign sources saying that the prime minister dismissed the threat.

Netanyahu denies claims, intends to file lawsuit

Netanyahu has denied the allegations, with the prime minister saying on September 9 that he instructed his lawyers to issue a libel lawsuit against Haaretz and the journalist who covered the story, Shlomi Eldar, according to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

“A thorough examination not only of the prime minister’s call log, but also of the records of entries into the Prime Minister’s Office during this period, does not show any entry of the Emirati representative into the Prime Minister’s Office,” the PMO said of the allegations, accusing it of being part of a “sinister plot with clear political timing, as part of the Left’s election campaign,” adding at the time that there would be “more such false plots.”

UAE rejects allegations, says country 'does not discuss' such matters directly with leaders

The UAE also rejected the claims made in the Haaretz report, with an official UAE source told the state-owned Abu Dhabi English-language newspaper The National on Sunday that "the UAE discusses security matters with other countries through the relevant bodies, and does not discuss details of this kind at the level of the leaders of the countries."

Two sources from the United States have also weighed in on the Haaretz investigation, telling The Jerusalem Post on September 9 that the Biden administration was unaware of any specific warning from the UAE before October 7 that Hamas was planning a major attack.

Shir Perets, Tzvi Jasper, Idan Kweller, and Amichai Stein contributed to this report.