Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed his lawyers to initiate a defamation lawsuit against Haaretz, an Israeli newspaper critical of the government, over a report claiming that the United Arab Emirates warned him of an imminent Hamas operation days before the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel.
According to excerpts from a book published by Haaretz, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan, president of the United Arab Emirates, held a telephone conversation with Netanyahu in September 2023. The report states that Netanyahu was warned during this call that Yahya Sinwar, then head of Hamas in Gaza, was planning a large-scale operation against Israel.
Netanyahu's office responded to the report by stating that "the United Arab Emirates did not warn the Prime Minister before October 7" and characterized the reporting as part of a conspiracy. The office did not elaborate further on the nature of the alleged conspiracy.
Haaretz has defended its reporting, standing by the information contained in the book excerpts it published. The newspaper, which has frequently been critical of Netanyahu's government, has not retracted or modified its account of the alleged warning.
The lawsuit represents a significant escalation in tensions between Netanyahu and the Israeli press. The dispute centers on whether advance warning of the Hamas operation was communicated to the Prime Minister through diplomatic channels in the weeks preceding the October 7 attacks, which resulted in significant casualties and triggered a broader regional conflict.
The legal action is ongoing, with no immediate resolution expected.