Report says UAE warned Netanyahu of major Hamas attack days before Oct. 7, 2023

What This is

• A Haaretz report, based on a new book, says the UAE’s leader warned Netanyahu shortly before Oct. 7 that Hamas was preparing a major operation.
• The report says the warning came in a roughly 45-minute call about a week and a half to ten days before the attack.
• The book-based account says the warning included claims that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was planning an operation that could cause major bloodshed and destabilize the region.
• The report alleges Netanyahu did not share the warning with Israel’s senior security chiefs.
• It also says Netanyahu downplayed alerts from Egyptian intelligence about a possible attack.
• Netanyahu’s office has denied the report’s account.
• The allegation has become a campaign issue, with opposition figures demanding answers and calling for an independent inquiry into the pre-Oct. 7 security failures.

Why This Matters

• If leaders got a credible warning and did not act, it raises basic questions about responsibility after a national disaster.
• The dispute could sway Israeli politics by shaping trust in Netanyahu and in the security agencies meant to prevent attacks.
• It could also affect ties with Arab partners like the UAE, since intelligence sharing depends on confidence that sensitive warnings will be handled seriously and quietly.
• More broadly, it shows the moral and practical risk of judging uncertain intelligence when the costs of being wrong are extreme.