Gaza Genocide · 08 September, 2026 · 2 min read
Netanyahu Denies UAE President Warning Before October 7 Hamas Operation
Haaretz reports MBZ warned Netanyahu of Hamas plan days before Oct 7; Netanyahu denies. Netanyahu's office says the Haaretz report is false and intends to sue for defamation.
171 outlets, one story, no spin found.
3 of 4 outlets skipped it: BBC details Shin Bet internal assessment and recommendations.
The Times of Israel was read line by line by the Watchdog: 6.7. See the score →
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UAE warning dispute
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied a Haaretz report that the UAE’s President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed warned him before October 7, 2023, about a major Hamas operation planned from Gaza, while the UAE Foreign Ministry said it does not comment on media reports or speculation about leaders’ talks.
“a “warning about a possible large and near-term Hamas operation against it””
Al-Arabi Al-Jadid said Yedioth Ahronoth reported that a high-ranking Middle East intelligence official told the paper that Abu Dhabi conveyed to Tel Aviv a “warning about a possible large and near-term Hamas operation against it” shortly before the attack.
Al-Arabi Al-Jadid also reported that Netanyahu, via his X account, claimed he found no documentation of the call mentioned in the investigation, and that the official declined to elaborate on whether the intelligence tied the warning to Yahya Sinwar.
Al-Jazeera Net reported that the UAE Foreign Ministry statement said “since October 7, 2023, the UAE’s efforts have focused on de-escalation, promoting regional stability, and limiting violence,” while noting that “when necessary, all relevant intelligence information has been exchanged between the concerned parties.”
Opposition and backlash
The dispute over whether Netanyahu received an Emirati warning before October 7 triggered opposition accusations and calls for accountability ahead of Israel’s elections, with multiple outlets describing the warning as a central political flashpoint.
CNN reported that four opposition party leaders—Gadi Eisenkot, Naftali Bennett, Avigdor Lieberman and Yair Golan—issued a joint statement calling for “an immediate and thorough investigation” into Netanyahu’s “failures and malfunctioning.”
CNN also quoted Bennett saying the report is “true,” writing on X that Netanyahu’s alleged disregard for the warnings amounts to “criminal negligence,” while Netanyahu’s office dismissed the report as an “absolute lie.”
Al-tilfaziyun Al-`Arabiy reported that former Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot accused Netanyahu of evading responsibility and wrote on X that the prime minister “received dozens of warnings about the October 7 attacks and ignored them all. He is unfit for his position.”
What’s at stake
Beyond the immediate controversy, the sources tie the warning dispute to the broader question of what Israel’s leadership knew before October 7 and what it did with that information, including whether security bodies were briefed.
“a “major operation” against Israel”
BBC said Haaretz’s investigation drew on material gathered by journalists Shlomi Eldar and Rotem Yoval for their upcoming book, and it described a call in which Mohammed bin Zayed warned Netanyahu about a “major operation” planned by Yahya Sinwar about ten days before the attack.
BBC also reported that Netanyahu’s office announced it would file a defamation suit against Haaretz, while the UAE Foreign Ministry said it does not confirm or deny the call and that relevant authorities in both countries exchange related intelligence as needed.
Al-Jazeera Net linked the dispute to the war’s human toll, stating that “Since October 8, 2023, Israel, with American support, has been committing genocide in Gaza, leaving more than 73,000 martyrs and over 174,000 Palestinian wounded,” and it said Hamas carried out the October 7 attack in response to “daily Israeli crimes against the Palestinian people and their sanctities, especially Al-Aqsa Mosque.”