Details have emerged regarding Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's secret trip to the UAE and his meeting with Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (MBZ), stemming from a Haaretz report. The report claims MBZ had previously warned Netanyahu about an impending Hamas threat before the October 7, 2023 attack, and that Netanyahu subsequently asked MBZ to deny these warnings. The Haaretz article also outlines how Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, via intermediaries, sent multiple urgent warnings about a major operation to Israeli intelligence, which were allegedly not treated with sufficient seriousness by Israeli officials.

Details have emerged regarding Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's secret trip to the UAE and his meeting with Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (MBZ), stemming from a Haaretz report. The report claims MBZ had previously warned Netanyahu about an impending Hamas threat before the October 7, 2023 attack, and that Netanyahu subsequently asked MBZ to deny these warnings. The Haaretz article also outlines how Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, via intermediaries, sent multiple urgent warnings about a major operation to Israeli intelligence, which were allegedly not treated with sufficient seriousness by Israeli officials.

Details have emerged regarding Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's secret trip to the UAE and his meeting with Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (MBZ), stemming from a Haaretz report. The report claims MBZ had previously warned Netanyahu about an impending Hamas threat before the October 7, 2023 attack, and that Netanyahu subsequently asked MBZ to deny these warnings. The Haaretz article also outlines how Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, via intermediaries, sent multiple urgent warnings about a major operation to Israeli intelligence, which were allegedly not treated with sufficient seriousness by Israeli officials.

In a fresh blow to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the details about his secret trip to the UAE over the weekend and his hour-long meeting with Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, popularly known as MBZ, has been leaked.

According to Israel's Channel 12 TV, Netanyahu on Sunday spoke to the UAE President in Abu Dhabi regarding a report that appeared on Israeli daily Haaretz. The report had claimed that MBZ warned Netanyahu about the potential threat by Hamas days before the attack and massacre that occurred on October 7, 2023.

During the meeting, Netanyahu allegedly asked MBZ to deny the revelations made in the Haaretz report. The sources quoted by Channel 12 TV station reportedly received first-hand information regarding the meeting.

While Israel and the UAE have direct lines of communication, often sharing intelligence, both sides were yet to publicly comment on the latest claims when this report was published.

The Haaretz report in question, published earlier this month, had claimed that the UAE president received intelligence from a Palestinian interlocutor, known as 'Coal Eyes' about the impending attack by Hamas. Coal Eyes, which later turned out to be former Palestinian minister and ex-Fatah official Sufian Abu Zaida, was an interlocutor between slain Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar and Israeli intelligence agencies.

According to Haaretz, Sinwar told Coal Eyes, "Tell the Israelis if they don’t advance, I’m preparinga huge surprise for them. Tell them to expect a zilzal, an earthquake."

Coal Eyes, who initially refrained from passing on the information directly to Israeli intelligence agency Shin Bet, reportedly conveyed the message to MBZ. 

In a second meeting in mid-September, Sinwar told Coal Eyes that Hamas was readying for a "formidable operation." This time Sinwar insisted the interlocutor to get in touch with Shin Beth directly about Hamas gearing up for "the mother of all surprises."

This time, Coal Eyes informed Shin Bet, but the Israeli officials did not take his warning seriously. A senior intelligence official cited by Haaretz said, "Either it was because he (Sinwar) grew tired of Israel's foot-dragging, wanting to pressure us into an arrangement and not so eager to start a war. Or, as we prefer to think, it was part of his 'Great Deception' plan, and he wanted to test the IDF's readiness".

Shocked by the Israeli response to the warning, the UAE president decided to call Netanyahu directly. MBZ had also alerted then CIA director William J. Burns about the Hamas threat.

TAGS