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Netanyahu personally received a warning from the UAE leader about Hamas attack preparations before October 7 but pushed back on security chiefs' proposals to strike Hamas officials, citing a desire to protect nascent Saudi normalization talks
Attributed to New York Times
Search results confirm that The New York Times published an investigation (widely summarized by outlets including Ynetnews and a Substack commentary citing the NYT piece) reporting that UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan called Netanyahu roughly ten days before October 7, 2023, warning of a potential attack from Gaza or the West Bank. According to minutes reviewed by five former senior Israeli officials, Netanyahu did not disclose this warning to security chiefs at an October 1, 2023 meeting, and when officials proposed strikes on Hamas leaders, he cited concerns about jeopardizing a potential Saudi normalization deal and told them to maintain calm in Gaza instead. The report builds on an earlier claim first published by Haaretz. Netanyahu's office (PMO) has denied he received any such specific warning.
Supporting sources
Contradicting sources
Multiple independent outlets (Ynetnews, and a secondary summary) corroborate that this is accurately attributed to a real New York Times investigation with the specific details (UAE warning, Oct. 1 meeting, Saudi normalization rationale) matching; however, Netanyahu's office disputes the underlying facts, so while the claim accurately reflects NYT's reporting, the truth of the underlying allegation remains contested by the Israeli PMO.
Some independent corroboration was found, but it isn't yet conclusive.
Sep 26, 2026, 9:36 AM UTC
DisputedInitial assessment.
Oct 11, 2026, 9:39 AM UTC
ConfirmedMultiple independent outlets (Ynetnews, and a secondary summary) corroborate that this is accurately attributed to a real New York Times investigation with the specific details (UAE warning, Oct. 1 meeting, Saudi normalization rationale) matching; however, Netanyahu's office disputes the underlying facts, so while the claim accurately reflects NYT's reporting, the truth of the underlying allegation remains contested by the Israeli PMO.
First observed Sep 26, 2026, 9:36 AM UTC · Last reviewed Oct 11, 2026, 9:39 AM UTC