Three years after the deadliest attack in Israeli history, the question of what was known beforehand — and by whom — has entered the courts. Benjamin Netanyahu has announced a lawsuit against Haaretz over its claim that the UAE's Mohammed bin Zayed warned him of an impending Hamas offensive ten days before October 7, 2023, a warning Netanyahu says never occurred. The dispute arrives as Netanyahu faces elections and declining polls, placing the weight of 1,195 deaths and a war that has claimed tens of thousands of lives on the contested ground of a single phone call that may or may not have hap
Netanyahu sues Haaretz over report of pre-October 7 UAE warning
At least 1,195 Israelis killed and 251 taken captive on October 7, 2023; subsequent Israeli military operations in Gaza have killed at least 73,669 Palestinians.
His call logs show no trace of it whatsoever
Mark
So Netanyahu is saying the call never happened at all—that his logs prove it?
Mimi
That's his position. He says his National Security Council reviewed the records and found nothing. But Haaretz is a serious outlet; they wouldn't publish this without sources.
Luke
Right, but we don't actually know who Haaretz's sources are or how direct their access is. The report says the UAE passed intelligence to Shin Bet and then MBZ called Netanyahu. Those are two different claims—one could be true and the other false.
Mark
And the UAE won't say anything?
Mimi
They issued a statement saying they don't comment on conversations between leaders. Which is diplomatic language for "we're not confirming or denying."
Luke
Which is interesting, because if the call never happened, wouldn't they just say so? Silence can mean something.
Mark
But it could also just mean they don't want to get dragged into Israeli politics.
Mimi
Exactly. And that's the real context here—Netanyahu is trailing in polls. A story that he ignored a warning about the worst attack in Israeli history is obviously damaging.
Luke
So we have to ask: is Netanyahu suing because the story is false, or because it's politically inconvenient? Those aren't the same thing.
Mark
Can courts even sort that out?
Mimi
That's what the lawsuit will test. But the underlying question—what Netanyahu knew and when—that's still open.
Der Puls
- Haaretz published a specific and explosive claim: that the UAE president personally warned Netanyahu of a Hamas attack ten days before October 7, and that Netanyahu dismissed it — a charge that, if true, would reshape the political reckoning over the worst intelligence failure in Israeli history.
- Netanyahu responded with unusual speed and force, calling the report fabricated, pointing to call logs that show no such conversation, and directing his legal team to pursue both the newspaper and its two named reporters.
- He went further, alleging the story originated with Muhammad Dahlan, a Palestinian exile in the UAE with longstanding political grievances — an accusation Dahlan's representatives denied, adding another contested layer to an already murky dispute.
- The UAE, whose silence is itself a kind of statement, declined to confirm or deny that any warning was ever issued, leaving the central fact of the story neither corroborated nor refuted.
- With Knesset elections approaching and Netanyahu trailing in polls against a former military chief, the lawsuit lands not only as a legal maneuver but as a political one — each side accusing the other of weaponizing the memory of October 7.
Three years after the deadliest attack in Israeli history, the question of what was known beforehand — and by whom — has entered the courts. Benjamin Netanyahu has announced a lawsuit against Haaretz over its claim that the UAE's Mohammed bin Zayed warned him of an impending Hamas offensive ten days before October 7, 2023, a warning Netanyahu says never occurred. The dispute arrives as Netanyahu faces elections and declining polls, placing the weight of 1,195 deaths and a war that has claimed tens of thousands of lives on the contested ground of a single phone call that may or may not have happened.
Benjamin Netanyahu announced this week that he would sue Haaretz, calling a recent report about the October 7 attacks "fabricated" and "false," and instructing his legal team to pursue the newspaper and its two reporters directly.
The article in question made a pointed claim: that Mohammed bin Zayed, the UAE's president, had telephoned Netanyahu ten days before October 7, 2023, to warn him that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was preparing what he described as a "huge surprise" — a large-scale offensive. According to Haaretz, the warning passed first through Israel's Shin Bet, which dismissed it, before bin Zayed raised it with Netanyahu himself, who also disregarded it.
Netanyahu rejected the account categorically. His National Security Council and Military Secretary reviewed his call logs for the period, he said, and found no record of any conversation with the UAE president. He framed the story as part of the "left's election campaign" against him, and separately alleged that the report's source was Muhammad Dahlan, a Palestinian political figure based in the UAE who was expelled from Fatah years ago following a conflict with Mahmoud Abbas. Dahlan's representatives denied the claim.
The UAE offered nothing to resolve the dispute. Its Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a brief statement saying it does not comment on media reports or speculation about conversations between leaders — a silence that neither confirms nor denies the central allegation.
The stakes are not abstract. October 7 killed at least 1,195 Israelis and led to the capture of 251 others. The Israeli military campaign that followed has killed at least 73,669 Palestinians. Netanyahu now faces Knesset elections in October, trailing in polls against former military chief Gadi Eisenkot. Whether a warning was issued, received, and ignored remains one of the most charged open questions in Israeli political life — and it is now, formally, a matter for the courts.
Benjamin Netanyahu moved swiftly to attack a newspaper report that suggested he had ignored a warning about the October 7 attacks. On Wednesday, the Israeli prime minister announced he would sue Haaretz, calling the story "fabricated" and "false," and instructing his legal team to pursue the publication and its two reporters, Shlomi Eldar and Ruth Yaval.
The Haaretz article, published the day before, made a specific claim: that Mohammed bin Zayed, the president of the United Arab Emirates, had phoned Netanyahu ten days before October 7, 2023, to warn him of an impending Hamas offensive. According to the report, bin Zayed had received intelligence through intermediaries suggesting that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was preparing what he called a "huge surprise"—language Sinwar used to describe an imminent large-scale attack. The UAE president, the story said, passed this warning to Israel's Shin Bet security agency, which dismissed it. Bin Zayed then raised the alarm directly with Netanyahu, who also disregarded it.
Netanyahu's response was categorical. He said his National Security Council and Military Secretary had reviewed his call logs for the relevant period and found no record of any conversation with the UAE president. He characterized the report as politically motivated, part of what he called the "left's election campaign" against him. He also made a separate allegation: that the source of the false report was Muhammad Dahlan, a Palestinian political figure living in the UAE who had been expelled from Fatah a decade earlier following a power struggle with Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas. Dahlan's representatives denied the accusation, according to Israeli media accounts.
The UAE itself offered no comment on the substance of the allegations. Its Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a brief statement saying the government does not discuss media reports or speculation about conversations between leaders.
The timing of the dispute is significant. Netanyahu is facing a difficult political moment. He trails in polls ahead of October Knesset elections, challenged by Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief. A report suggesting he had received and ignored a warning about the deadliest attack in Israeli history—one that killed at least 1,195 people and led to the capture of 251 others—carries obvious political weight. The subsequent Israeli military campaign in Gaza has resulted in at least 73,669 Palestinian deaths, according to available counts.
What remains unresolved is whether such a warning actually occurred. Haaretz stands by its reporting. Netanyahu denies the conversation took place and has moved to use the courts to challenge the claim. The UAE has declined to confirm or deny any warning was issued. The question of what information was available to Israeli decision-makers before October 7, and what was done with it, remains contested terrain in Israeli politics.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
The National Security Council and the Military Secretary meticulously reviewed the Prime Minister's call log for those days—and found no trace of it whatsoever.— Benjamin Netanyahu, denying the reported conversation with UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed
The UAE government does not comment on media stories or speculation regarding conversations between government leaders.— UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement
Möchten Sie die ganze Geschichte?
Das Original lesen bei Al Jazeera ↗
Politics & Governance