Netanyahu meets UAE president in Abu Dhabi amid Oct 7 warning controversy

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Abu Dhabi on Sunday and met UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a senior Israeli official told Reuters, in a high-level engagement between the two countries.

There was no immediate comment from Netanyahu's office or the UAE foreign ministry on the meeting.

The visit comes amid renewed scrutiny over a report by Israeli newspaper Haaretz that Sheikh Mohammed had warned Netanyahu about a week and a half before the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack that the group was preparing a major operation against Israel. According to the report, the warning was not passed on to Israeli intelligence agencies or the military.

Netanyahu has denied the report and threatened legal action against Haaretz. He is also facing a difficult reelection campaign, with opposition leaders accusing him of bearing responsibility for security failures that preceded the Hamas attack.

The UAE has not commented on the Haaretz report but has said that Abu Dhabi and Israel have maintained "open and direct lines of communication" since establishing diplomatic relations in 2020 under the Abraham Accords.

A UAE source previously told Reuters that security matters are discussed with other countries through the "relevant entities", but not "at the level of national leaders".

Netanyahu and Sheikh Mohammed have also previously been reported to have held a private meeting in the UAE. In May, Netanyahu's office said the Israeli prime minister had "secretly visited" the Gulf country and met its president, but the UAE denied that Sheikh Mohammed had met Netanyahu.

A source familiar with the matter later said the two leaders had met in Al-Ain, an oasis city in Abu Dhabi near the country's border with Oman, on March 26.

The UAE has strengthened its ties with the US and Israel since coming under attack during the Iran war. Its diplomatic relationship with Israel, established through the 2020 Abraham Accords, has also given Abu Dhabi a channel for regional influence and communication with Washington.- Ends