Allegations against Israeli Prime Minister: Netanyahu ignored warnings before October 7th

This news could cause an uproar before the upcoming elections in Israel in October: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is said to have been warned by telephone of a Hamas attack by the President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Mohammed Bin Zayed, shortly before October 7, 2023 - and did nothing.

According to the Israeli newspaper Ha'aretz, the president spoke about Hamas leader Jahia Sinwar's plans for a large-scale operation against Israel and expressed concern about destabilizing the region.

Netanyahu is said to have not only reacted calmly, he apparently did not even inform the security authorities. Former intelligence and army chiefs Ronen Bar and Herzl Halevi said they had not been informed.

The revelations are part of a book by journalists Schlomi Eldar and Ruth Yuval. Netanyahu's office called the report an "absolute lie." The authors cite three high-ranking sources as evidence of the phone call in question, including Bin Zayed's Palestinian advisor who was present at the conversation.

After the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, the Israeli military launched an offensive in Gaza, followed in 2024 by the advance against Hezbollah in Lebanon. The conflict over the region of Palestine began at the beginning of the 20th century.

The question of responsibility for October 7th still concerns Israeli society. While the heads of the army and secret services have sometimes admitted mistakes or resigned, Netanyahu is primarily blaming others. At the same time, it prevents independent clarification.

The report is likely to lead to new allegations. According to the research, Bin Zayed's call was the clearest, but not the only, warning. Negotiations had previously taken place between Israel and Hamas through an intermediary from the Palestinian Fatah: The issue was the release of two Israelis held in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and the easing of the blockade of the coastal strip. An agreement was said to be within reach at the end of August 2023 and confirmed by Netanyahu.

But then Netanyahu repeatedly postponed the convening of the ministerial committee, whose approval was required. Sinwar is said to have broken off contact at the beginning of September and sent a warning through the Fatah mediator that they should prepare for an "earthquake" if progress continued.

On September 17, Israel's security agencies met in Netanyahu's office to discuss the warning. Intelligence chief Bar advised a preemptive strike and “strong defensive measures.” However, the meeting ended inconclusively, according to the report, prompting Bin Zayed to personally warn Netanyahu in late September.

According to the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, Netanyahu is said to have received a similar warning from the head of the Egyptian secret service, Abbas Kamel. At another meeting with the security authorities, Netanyahu is said to have mentioned none of these warnings. “If we had known about it, (…) our entire picture of the situation might have changed,” the paper quoted a secret service official as saying.

It is no coincidence that the authors are going public with their research right now. Israel is facing important elections that will decide the future of Netanyahu and his far-right government. Opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot has already taken up the publication: Netanyahu had “blindly led Israel into the catastrophe of October 7th”.

Netanyahu himself accused the security authorities last week of not waking him up in time on the morning of the attack. However, according to a report by Israeli broadcaster Channel 12, the prime minister only spoke to army chief Halevi three hours after he was informed of the attack at 6:29 a.m.