Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu 'was warned days before that Hamas were planning major October 7 attack'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was allegedly warned Hamas was planning a major attack, dubbed an “earthquake” by its commanders, days before the October 7 atrocities in 2023. The Hamas assault on southern Israel killed close to 2,000 people and sparked the bloody Gaza war which local health chiefs suggest has slaughtered 70,000 Palestinians. But United Arab Emirates ruler Mohamed bin Zayed said in a fresh report to have made a 45-minute phone call a week-and-a-half before the terror attack, warning Netanyahu that Hamas leaders were planning an operation against Israel. The report in Haaretz newspaper suggested Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was furious over stalled prisoner exchange talks and Israel’s blockade of Gaza – and had warned the UAE via an intermediary of an attack. It claimed the now dead terror boss said he was preparing a “huge surprise” and told contacts to tell Israel “to expect an earthquake”. On Thursday, four Israeli opposition party leaders – Gadi Eisenkot, Naftali Bennett, Avigdor Lieberman and Yair Golan – called for “an immediate and thorough investigation” into Netanyahu’s “failures and malfunctioning”. A new report suggests that during the call to Netanyahu, the UAE leader - dubbed “MBZ” - was with a former Gazan Palestinian, then living in Abu Dhabi, who claimed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was planning a “major event”. On Friday, the Prime Minister’s office dismissed the report as an “absolute lie” and threatened to sue an Israeli newspaper and the journalists who wrote the report. Netanyahu on Wednesday branded the Haaretz report “politically-motivated” and part of the “left’s election campaign”. He even denied claims of a phone call with MBZ, suggesting officials had “meticulously reviewed the Prime Minister’s call log for those days—and found no trace of it whatsoever”. But the report sparked a major storm as Netanyahu is said not to have warned his military or intelligence leaders about the alleged phone conversation. Haaretz included in its report that Netanyahu’s conversation with MBZ was made on a “special phone device” provided by the Emirati embassy. Israel’s elections are just two months away, as Netanyahu comes under escalating pressure from his political enemies calling for an investigation into what he did know of October 7. The astonishing claims, involving dozens of Israeli and global sources, are made in a new book by Israeli journalists Shlomi Eldar and Ruth Yuval, and revealed by Israeli newspaper Haaretz. The “MBZ” adviser reportedly said: “The emir explained that, in his assessment, Sinwar was preparing for a major event. He told Netanyahu that Israel should be ready. Concurrently, he recommended trying to find an economic solution for the Strip and calming the West Bank to prevent escalation." But the claim suggested that as Bin Zayed urged Netanyahu to take the situation seriously, the prime minister reacted calmly. Netanyahu reportedly said Hamas intended to operate in the West Bank, and that Israel was prepared for any scenario. And then, the accusation outlines, Netanyahu failed to pass on the tip to either his domestic intelligence agency, the Shin Bet, or Israel’s foreign agency the Mossad. The months preceding the October attack saw Israel and Hamas have secret talks about gradually lifting a blockade of the Palestinian Strip. In their joint statement, the four opposition party leaders – Gadi Eisenkot, Naftali Bennett, Avigdor Lieberman and Yair Golan –added: “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?” Added to the political pressure on Netanyahu were further claims Israel was warned by Egypt of potential violence days before the Hamas attack. American House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee head Michael McCaul told reporters of the alleged warning. Mr McCaul told reporters following an intelligence briefing about the Middle East crisis: "We know that Egypt has warned the Israelis three days prior that an event like this could happen. I don't want to get too much into classified, but a warning was given. "I think the question was at what level."