Haaretz: Netanyahu was warned before October 7 – did nothing

 

Nora Fernstedt

 

Published 21.10Updated 21.45

 

          Photo: Jacquelyn Martin /AP/TT

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was warned a week before the attacks on October 7, 2023 – but did nothing.

This is reported by Haaretz, citing sources.

“Pure lies,” says the Prime Minister’s staff about the information.

The information to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz concerns a phone call that Netanyahu received at the end of September 2023.

It was United Arab Emirates President Mohamed bin Zayed who called.

In the call, which lasted 45 minutes, bin Zayed warned that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was planning a major operation against Israel.

The concern: Destabilizing the entire region

The Emirati president is said to have expressed concern that the incident would not only lead to bloodshed – but also destabilize the entire region.

But Netanyahu is said to have downplayed the seriousness and said that Israel was prepared for all scenarios. He said that he assessed that a Hamas operation would take place in the West Bank.

The Prime Minister’s Office calls the information “pure lies”.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu did not speak with the President of the United Arab Emirates during the relevant period and did not receive any warning from him,” they write in a response to Haaretz.