A explosive new investigation claims Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu received a direct, personal warning that Hamas was preparing a massive attack roughly ten days before the October 7, 2023 massacre — and never passed that warning along to his own top security officials.
According to the report from Haaretz, citing three senior foreign sources, United Arab Emirates President Mohamed bin Zayed personally told Netanyahu during a 45-minute phone call that then-Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was preparing a major operation against Israel. Netanyahu’s office flatly denied the report, saying the conversation never happened and calling the story an “absolute lie.”
Middle East expert Amos Nadan of Tel Aviv University’s Moshe Dayan Center told the Daily Caller News Foundation that had Israel reinforced its border in response to a sufficiently clear warning, “the scale of the disaster would have been significantly reduced,” though he cautioned it’s far harder to say whether the attack itself could have been stopped entirely.
Israel’s campaign in Gaza has killed more than 73,650 Palestinians since the October 7 attack, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, while Hamas killed roughly 1,200 Israelis and kidnapped 251 others that day.
The report claims bin Zayed warned Netanyahu that Sinwar’s plan could trigger major bloodshed, destabilize the region, and threaten the Abraham Accords. Netanyahu reportedly brushed off the concern, telling bin Zayed he believed Hamas was more likely to act in the West Bank and assuring him Israel was ready for anything.
The original tip is said to have come from Sinwar himself, relayed through a Fatah intermediary during a period when indirect talks between Israel and Hamas were breaking down. Sinwar allegedly warned that a massive, surprise “earthquake” was coming unless negotiations progressed. That message reportedly reached Israel’s Shin Bet on September 15, prompting then-chief Ronen Bar to immediately brief Netanyahu. A follow-up security meeting on September 17 reportedly failed to conclude that a large-scale Gaza assault was imminent.
Bar is said to have warned Israel was on a “collision course” and pushed for either a major offensive or stronger defenses ahead of the Jewish holidays — but no action was taken. Bin Zayed then allegedly reached out to Netanyahu directly after concluding Israel wasn’t taking the threat seriously. Both Bar and former IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi say they were never told about bin Zayed’s warning.
Separately, Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel reportedly warned Netanyahu around the same time of an unusual, potentially devastating Hamas operation — a warning Netanyahu allegedly dismissed by saying Gaza was under control. An Emirati source has since independently confirmed to the Times of Israel that the bin Zayed warning took place. The Prime Minister’s Office continues to deny the entire account.
