The Israeli PM reportedly secretly traveled to Abu Dhabi after claims that Mohamed bin Zayed had alerted him of the impending Hamas operation
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly secretly flew to the UAE to ask President Mohamed bin Zayed to deny that he had warned the Jewish state of a major Hamas threat ahead of the deadly October 7 attack.
Netanyahu has faced growing scrutiny over claims that he had received multiple warnings from regional countries in the run-up to the Hamas-led incursion, which killed around 1,200 people, saw 251 taken hostage, and which led to the Gaza war.
Netanyahu met bin Zayed for about an hour in Abu Dhabi on Sunday to ask the Emirati president to deny the warning claim, AP reported on Monday, citing two people briefed on the trip.
Haaretz first reported earlier this month that Emirati intelligence had alerted Israel’s Shin Bet security service to a possible major Hamas operation, prompting bin Zayed to call Netanyahu about ten days before the assault. The UAE president reportedly warned that the plan could lead to bloodshed and destabilize the region.
Netanyahu reportedly played down the threat, saying he believed Hamas was more likely to act in the occupied West Bank and that Israel was prepared. His office has rejected the Haaretz report as an “absolute lie,” insisting no such call took place.
Egypt reportedly also gave Israel advance warning. The Atlantic reported that then-intelligence chief Abbas Kamel traveled to Israel less than two weeks before the attack to alert officials that Hamas appeared to be preparing a major operation.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: rt.com
