Netanyahu Secretly Visits UAE Seeking Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Denial of Pre-Oct. 7 Warning

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu secretly traveled to Abu Dhabi on Sunday and met with United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in a meeting that, according to The Associated Press, focused in part on the growing controversy over an alleged warning the Emirati leader gave Netanyahu before the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack.

According to a person with firsthand knowledge of the meeting cited by AP, Netanyahu specifically asked Sheikh Mohammed to deny reports that he had warned the Israeli prime minister that Hamas was preparing a major attack. A second regional official familiar with the meeting also confirmed the encounter to AP. Both spoke anonymously because of the confidential nature of the talks.

An Hour-Long Meeting in Abu Dhabi

AP reported that Netanyahu and Sheikh Mohammed held an approximately hour-long meeting on Sunday. The visit had not been publicly announced in advance and was first reported by Israel's Channel 12.

The reported purpose of Netanyahu's request was to address allegations first published earlier this month by Haaretz, according to which Sheikh Mohammed personally warned Netanyahu shortly before October 7 that Hamas was preparing a major operation against Israel.

Netanyahu's office has previously rejected the allegation, describing the report as false. The prime minister has maintained that he did not receive such a warning from the Emirati president.

What Was the Alleged Warning?

According to the Haaretz report, Sheikh Mohammed spoke with Netanyahu approximately 10 days before the October 7 attack and warned him that then-Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was preparing a major operation.

The reported warning was said to include concerns that a major Hamas attack could result in significant bloodshed, destabilize the region and undermine the Abraham Accords and the broader process of Arab-Israeli normalization.

The allegation is particularly significant because it concerns a warning allegedly coming directly from the leader of a country that maintains diplomatic relations with Israel.

UAE Has Not Publicly Denied the Warning

The UAE Foreign Ministry declined to comment to AP on the reported Netanyahu–Sheikh Mohammed meeting.

Instead, the ministry reiterated that the UAE maintains “open and direct lines of communication” with Israel and shares relevant intelligence when necessary. Importantly, the statement did not constitute a public denial that Sheikh Mohammed had warned Netanyahu before October 7.

That leaves the central allegation unresolved.

Netanyahu's Position Remains 

Netanyahu's office has previously rejected the Haaretz report and denied that the Emirati president warned him about an impending Hamas attack.

The prime minister's denial has therefore now been placed against a new development: according to AP's source with firsthand knowledge, Netanyahu himself raised the issue during his private meeting with Sheikh Mohammed and asked the Emirati president to publicly deny the account.

Why the Issue Is Politically Explosive

The controversy goes directly to one of the central questions surrounding the October 7 disaster: what warnings reached the prime minister before the attack, what did he know, and what actions did he take in response?

The alleged UAE warning is part of a broader picture of warnings reported in the weeks preceding October 7. AP previously reported on the Haaretz allegation while emphasizing that it was based on an Israeli newspaper report rather than independently fact.

The issue has also become politically sensitive because Netanyahu is facing an election later this year and opposition figures have argued that responsibility for the failures preceding October 7 must be examined.

A New Dimension to the Controversy

The significance of Sunday's meeting is therefore not simply that Netanyahu traveled to Abu Dhabi.

The new AP reporting provides a specific account of what happened inside the meeting: according to a person with firsthand knowledge, Netanyahu asked Sheikh Mohammed to deny the allegation that he had warned him before October 7.

At the same time, the UAE has not publicly confirmed the alleged conversation and has not issued the requested denial.

The result is a striking diplomatic and political impasse: Netanyahu denies receiving the warning, while the Emirati side has so far declined to publicly settle the question.

The Question Now Moving to Center Stage

The dispute is likely to remain a major issue in Israel's debate over the failures that preceded October 7.

For now, the most firmly established new fact is the one reported by AP: Netanyahu met Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed in Abu Dhabi and, according to a source with firsthand knowledge, asked him to deny the reported prewar warning.