The Haaretz Investigation
Israeli opposition leaders have united in condemning Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as unfit to serve following an explosive report that the United Arab Emirates had personally warned him of Hamas’s plans days before the October 7, 2023 attack. The investigation, published by Israeli newspaper Haaretz on Tuesday and excerpted from the forthcoming book “Kidnapped: 843 Days of Abandonment” by journalists Shlomi Eldar and Ruth Yuval, alleges that UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan held a 45 minute phone conversation with Netanyahu approximately a week and a half before the attack. During the call, the Emirati leader reportedly delivered an “explicit warning” that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was preparing a major operation against Israel, describing it as a potential “earthquake” that could lead to significant bloodshed, destabilise the entire region, and threaten the Abraham Accords.
According to the report, Netanyahu responded calmly to the warning. He allegedly believed Hamas was preparing an operation in the West Bank rather than a large scale attack from Gaza, and assured the Emirati leader that Israel was prepared for different scenarios. Crucially, the investigation claims that Netanyahu did not inform senior Israeli security officials about the warning, including former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar and former IDF chief of staff Herzi Halevi, nor did he include it in subsequent security briefings.
Opposition Leaders Demand State Inquiry
The report has triggered an immediate and fierce political backlash, with four major opposition leaders, Gadi Eisenkot, Naftali Bennett, Avigdor Lieberman and Yair Golan issuing a joint statement demanding a state commission of inquiry. “The shocking revelations this morning demand an immediate and thorough investigation,” the statement read, adding that they add to a “growing body of revelations about Netanyahu’s failures and dysfunction”. “The Israeli public has a right to know: What did Netanyahu know, when did he know it, why did he fail to inform the security establishment, and why did he fail to act to protect the citizens of Israel?”.
The opposition leaders pledged that immediately upon forming the next government, they would establish a state commission of inquiry to investigate the failures that led to the October 7 disaster and ensure such a thing never happens again. They also declared that Netanyahu and his government partners were “unfit to continue in office,” vowing to work together to prevent them from “leading to another disaster”.
Eisenkot and Bennett Lead the Charge
Gadi Eisenkot, a former military commander who has emerged as Netanyahu’s top rival in the upcoming October 27 elections, was particularly scathing in his condemnation. “Netanyahu received dozens of warnings for October 7 and ignored them all. He is unfit,” Eisenkot wrote on X. He accused the long serving prime minister of evading responsibility for security lapses and resorting to “pathetic” excuses, such as claiming he was not woken up soon enough on the morning of the attack. In a separate statement, Eisenkot accused Netanyahu of leading Israel “blindly to disaster”.
Naftali Bennett, a former prime minister also running in the elections, went further, declaring that Netanyahu “bears personal and direct responsibility” for the deaths on October 7, the deadliest attack in Israeli history. “Netanyahu cannot continue to serve in his position for even one more minute,” Bennett said. He later accused Netanyahu of “criminal negligence” over the warnings and insisted that the report was credible. Yair Golan, leader of the centre left Democrats Party, accused Netanyahu of “endangering Israel,” stating: “The stories about ‘no one woke me up’ are over. You knew, you ignored, you failed, you are to blame”.
Netanyahu’s Office
Netanyahu’s office has vigorously rejected the report, calling it an “absolute lie” and denying that the prime minister spoke with the Emirati leader at the time in question. “No warning was given to the Prime Minister from the United Arab Emirates before October 7th,” his office said in a statement. The UAE has declined to comment on the specific allegations, though it confirmed that relevant intelligence has been and continues to be shared with Israeli authorities through established channels.
The report also noted that Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel had reportedly warned Netanyahu around the same period about an unusual and potentially serious operation being prepared by Hamas, a warning that Netanyahu similarly did not include in subsequent security briefings.
The Implications
The allegations come at a critical juncture, with Israelis heading to the polls on October 27 in an election that could end Netanyahu’s long tenure in office. The report reinforces long standing accusations that Netanyahu for years sought to preserve the status quo with Hamas, allowing the group to receive funding via Qatar under the assumption that it was more interested in self preservation than in a devastating war with Israel. Meanwhile, he focused on weakening the Palestinian Authority, led by Hamas’s rivals, as part of his opposition to the creation of a Palestinian state. Many Israelis have long demanded an independent state commission of inquiry into the security lapses that failed to prevent the October 7 attack, but Netanyahu’s government has consistently rejected such proposals.
The Haaretz investigation has now added fresh fuel to that demand. Hamas’s October 7 attack killed 1,221 people, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures, with militants also taking 251 settlers prisoner, 44 of whom are already dead. Israel’s offensive has left most of Gaza in ruins and killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza health ministry.