Evidence

Multiple mainstream outlets (CNN, France 24, The Jerusalem Post, CBC/AP, Times of Israel) reported in September 2026 on an investigation published by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, drawn from an upcoming book by journalists Shlomi Eldar and Ruti Yuval. The report claims UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan called Netanyahu roughly 10 days before October 7, 2023, and during a 45-minute conversation warned him that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was planning a major operation that could cause bloodshed, citing three unnamed senior foreign officials and a Palestinian adviser to bin Zayed. The report says Netanyahu responded 'calmly,' told bin Zayed he believed Hamas would act in the West Bank, and did not brief Israel's Shin Bet on the specific warning. Netanyahu's office publicly called the report an 'absolute lie' and later 'false,' saying he did not speak with the UAE president during the period in question and that any relevant information would have gone through intelligence channels. I found no independent fact-checking assessment from Reuters Fact Check, AFP Fact Check, Bellingcat, or EUvsDisinfo evaluating this specific claim; the coverage found consists of news reports relaying and cross-citing the original Haaretz investigation, not independent forensic verification.