Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is confronting intensified political pressure following reports that officials from Egypt and the United Arab Emirates warned him ahead of the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel. The incident, regarded as one of Israel’s most severe security breaches, has become a focal point in the lead-up to an anticipated closely contested election.
The allegations of prior intelligence warnings emerged amid a politically charged atmosphere, with Netanyahu’s far-right coalition trailing a diverse opposition bloc in recent polls. Yair Golan, leader of the left-wing Democrats party, posted a video highlighting Netanyahu’s own public acknowledgment in June 2023 of a potential Hamas threat, asserting that the prime minister ignored the warnings despite being responsible for national security.
Avigdor Lieberman, former defense minister under Netanyahu and leader of the right-wing Israel Beiteinu party, also criticized him, stating he had cautioned Netanyahu as early as 2016 about the risk of a cross-border Hamas attack. These comments add pressure on Netanyahu, who has denied receiving any prior warnings related specifically to the October assault.
Reports first surfaced in early September that Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, leader of the UAE, had alerted Netanyahu roughly 10 days before the attack that Hamas’s Gaza leader, Yahya Sinwar, was planning a significant operation. Netanyahu has vehemently rejected this claim and threatened legal action against the Israeli newspaper that published the report, denying it categorically. Similarly, he dismissed claims that Abbas Kamel, then head of Egyptian intelligence, contacted him in early October with a warning of the imminent attack, calling plans to file libel suits over such reports.
In a notable development on Sunday, Netanyahu conducted a previously undisclosed meeting in the UAE with Sheikh Mohamed. Sources familiar with the encounter indicated that the Haaretz article detailing the alleged UAE warning was discussed but did not confirm whether Netanyahu sought an official denial of the warning claim. The Israeli prime minister’s office declined to comment on the meeting, and the Emirati foreign ministry also refrained from responding.
The revelations come as Netanyahu faces mounting scrutiny over the perceived intelligence failure and its consequences, with political rivals using the issue to question his leadership ahead of national elections expected in November. While the extent of prior warnings remains contested, the episode underlines ongoing tensions within Israel over security preparedness and political accountability.