Haaretz reported on Tuesday that Benjamin Netanyahu had been warned by Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan about a Hamas plan before the 7 October 2023 attack. Netanyahu rejected the claim as an absolute lie.
The report said the call from the president of the UAE came a week and a half before the attack and lasted 45 minutes. Haaretz said the conversation took place from the presidential palace in Abu Dhabi, and that a UAE diplomat delivered a secure phone to Netanyahu for the talks.
Haaretz and Abu Dhabi
The new allegation matters because it narrows the timeline around what Netanyahu may have known before Hamas carried out the 7 October 2023 attack. Haaretz also said Yahya Sinwar had warned a former Palestinian official that the militants were preparing a terrifying operation, which he described as an earthquake. That account places separate warnings on both sides of the same period without resolving what Netanyahu did with them.
Haaretz said Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan told Netanyahu that Hamas was planning a major operation. The report also said Netanyahu denied that he spoke to the Emirati leader at that time. The dispute is not over whether the attack happened; it is over whether a direct warning reached Netanyahu early enough to change his choices.
Israeli opposition reaction
Israeli opposition leaders moved quickly on Tuesday. Gadi Eisenkot said on X: "Netanyahu received dozens of warnings for 7 October and ignored them all. He is unfit." Naftali Bennett said Netanyahu "bears personal and direct responsibility" and that "Netanyahu cannot continue to serve in his position for even one more minute." Yair Golan accused him of "endangering Israel."
The criticism landed in the middle of an election campaign and against the background of the 7 October 2023 attack, which the report said killed more than 1,200 people and took another 251 people hostage. For Israeli voters, the practical question is now whether Netanyahu was warned, when he was warned, and what action he took, if any, before the attack that reshaped the campaign.
What Netanyahu must answer
The allegation leaves Netanyahu facing two separate tests: whether the warning call happened as described, and whether any follow-up decision was made after a 45-minute conversation from Abu Dhabi. Opposition leaders have already said they want to find out what he knew and when. That demand now sits at the center of the political fallout around the report.
