Gaza Genocide · updated 1h ago · 3 min read
UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Warned Benjamin Netanyahu of Hamas Operation Before Oct. 7
UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed warned Netanyahu of Hamas operation days before Oct 7, 2023. Netanyahu reportedly did not brief Israel's security chiefs about the warning.
When the UAE warning call happened (days vs exact timing).
9 of 11 outlets skipped it: haaretz says Sinwar told an intermediary to convey “earthquake”.
The Jerusalem Post was read line by line by the Watchdog: 6.6. See the score →
23outlets compared
Same story, two versions
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Timing differences affect whether warning is framed as near-immediate or earlier warning.
UAE warning before Oct. 7
A report based on an investigation for a new book says Benjamin Netanyahu was personally warned by UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was planning a major operation against Israel about a week and a half before the Oct. 7, 2023 attack.
“a week and a half before the attack”
The Guardian says the claim is that bin Zayed called Netanyahu from the presidential palace in Abu Dhabi for a 45-minute conversation in which he warned that Sinwar was preparing “a terrifying operation,” described as an “earthquake,” and that Netanyahu reacted “calmly” to the news.T
The AP similarly reports that bin Zayed spoke with Netanyahu 10 days before the attack and warned that Sinwar was planning an operation that would lead to bloodshed and could destabilize the region and undermine the Abraham Accords.
In the same reporting, Netanyahu’s office denied the warning, saying “If there was any relevant information, it was passed through intelligence channels between the two countries,” while the UAE Foreign Ministry said it would not comment on “speculation regarding conversations between government leaders.”
Backlash and competing claims
Opposition leaders seized on the report as an election issue, with the Guardian saying Israeli opposition leaders described Netanyahu as “unfit” and that Netanyahu denounced the report as an “absolute lie.”T
The Guardian quotes Gadi Eisenkot accusing Netanyahu of evading responsibility and writing on X, “Netanyahu received dozens of warnings for 7 October and ignored them all. THe is unfit,” while Naftali Bennett said Netanyahu “bears personal and direct responsibility” for the deaths on 7 October.
CNN reports that four opposition party leaders issued a rare joint statement calling for “an immediate and thorough investigation” into Netanyahu’s “failures and malfunctioning,” asking “The Israeli public is entitled to know: What did Netanyahu know, when did he know, why he didn’t update the security establishment, and why he didn’t act to protect Israeli civilians?”
CNN also includes a direct pushback from Eldar, who told Jake Tapper, “It’s true,” and said he had “the document, I have records, I have everything that shows” bin Zayed called Netanyahu a week and a half before Oct. 7.
Meanwhile, Netanyahu’s office and the UAE Foreign Ministry both denied or declined to engage, with the Prime Minister’s Office saying Netanyahu “did not speak with the president of the United Arab Emirates during the period in question and did not receive any warning from him.”
War aftermath and what’s at stake
The report’s political fallout is tied to the scale of the Oct. 7 attack and the subsequent war, with the Guardian saying Hamas militants killed more than 1,200 people and took another 251 people hostage and that Israel’s retaliatory offensive has left most of Gaza in ruins and killed more than 73,000 Palestinians.
“killed more than 73,000 Palestinians”
AP similarly states that Hamas militants killed some 1,200 people and took another 251 hostage, and it adds that Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed more than 73,650 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Opposition parties in the reporting argue for an official inquiry, with the Guardian saying many Israelis have demanded an independent state commission of inquiry into the security lapses and that Netanyahu’s government has rejected the proposal.T
CNN frames accountability as central to the campaign, noting that Netanyahu’s rivals argue the report shows what they say is a growing list of warnings he had ignored, and it quotes Bennett calling the alleged disregard “criminal negligence.”
Across the coverage, the dispute turns on whether Netanyahu briefed security chiefs, with CNN saying Netanyahu’s office denied the warning and with the Guardian reporting that Haaretz said bin Zayed communicated with senior Israeli leaders including Netanyahu and Isaac Herzog via a secure phone delivered by a UAE diplomat.T