Netanyahu's Secret Abu Dhabi Trip, a Leak, and a Censor's Complaint

Benjamin Netanyahu flew secretly to Abu Dhabi on Sunday to meet the president of the United Arab Emirates, a trip confirmed by two people briefed on it and then, unusually, by the UAE's own state news agency. Within a day the story had turned on the prime minister's own security service, which asked Israel's military censor to prosecute the television station that broke it.

Netanyahu's Secret Abu Dhabi Trip, a Leak, and a Censor's Complaint

Jerusalem, Israel - The prime minister traveled to Abu Dhabi on Sunday and met President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a visit confirmed by two people briefed on the trip and later by the UAE's state news agency.

A Trip Confirmed Twice, Explained Two Ways

Two people who were briefed on the Israeli leader's trip confirmed on Monday that Netanyahu traveled secretly to the United Arab Emirates and met President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The meeting took place on Sunday, according to the Associated Press, which described the encounter as "an hourlong meeting with the UAE's president."

Channel 12, which first reported the trip, cited two unnamed sources in saying Netanyahu traveled by private plane to Abu Dhabi and that the visit lasted four hours, with most of the meeting between the two leaders held privately. Israel's public broadcaster KAN reported that the plane departed Ben Gurion Airport in the afternoon and landed in Abu Dhabi at 3.10 pm (1110 GMT), then took off for Israel at 7.10 pm (1510 GMT) and landed shortly after 10 pm (1900 GMT).

JFeed reported the secret visit "lasted approximately six hours" and that Netanyahu "took off in the morning hours on a private plane to Abu Dhabi and remained in the Emirates throughout the day." Three senior Israeli officials told Reuters the meeting lasted six hours and focused on Iran. The accounts do not agree on the duration of the meeting.

What the UAE Said, and What It Did Not

The UAE's Foreign Ministry declined to comment on reports about the meeting but stressed it maintains "open and direct lines of communication" with Israel and shares "all relevant intelligence." The ministry refused to address the content of the meeting directly and did not issue a denial statement.

The UAE's state news agency WAM confirmed on Monday that Netanyahu visited the Gulf country on Sunday, saying his meeting with Sheikh Mohamed focused on bilateral relations. It was the first official confirmation from Abu Dhabi of Netanyahu's trip. WAM reported that Sheikh Mohamed and Netanyahu discussed bilateral relations "and ways to strengthen and develop them."

An unnamed UAE official source told the Abu Dhabi-based newspaper The National that the country discusses security matters with other states through the relevant agencies, "not at the level of national leaders." The UAE has not confirmed that any warning was conveyed, and it has not denied the Haaretz report at the centre of the dispute.

The Complaint Filed Against Channel 12

The Shin Bet filed a complaint Monday evening with the chief military censor demanding that Channel 12 be prosecuted "to the fullest extent" after the network broadcast details of Netanyahu's secret visit to the United Arab Emirates. "Publishing the visit at the stage it was published created a risk to the prime minister's security, to the operation and to forces on the ground," the Shin Bet stated.

"In addition, publishing the visit and the manner in which it took place exposed the service's operational methods, in a way that puts future operations at significantly higher risk." The complaint focuses on the timing of the broadcast: Channel 12's report aired Sunday night at 9.38 pm, while the prime minister's aircraft was still far from Israeli borders. The plane landed in Israel only about an hour later, at 10.27 pm.

According to the complaint, broadcasting while the delegation was still airborne created a real security risk. No decision on the complaint has been reported, and Channel 12 has not been charged.

The Warning at the Centre of It

One of the two people briefed on the trip said the talks focused on a report published by the Israeli daily Haaretz earlier in September that said the Emirati leader warned Netanyahu about a looming attack by Hamas just ahead of 7 October 2023. Netanyahu asked Sheikh Mohamed to deny the report, according to a person said to have firsthand information about the meeting.

The person, along with a regional official briefed on the meeting, spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the secret trip. Multiple outlets reported that Netanyahu sought a public denial, and Channel 12's initial disclosure prompted the Shin Bet complaint. Netanyahu's office had previously denied the Haaretz report, and his office denied that he asked Sheikh Mohamed to address it.

The Haaretz investigation, published on 8 September 2026 by journalists Shlomi Eldar and Ruth Yaval, claimed that Sheikh Mohamed warned Netanyahu about a possible attack by Hamas 10 days before the events of 7 October 2023. Haaretz reported that the Emirati leader spoke to Netanyahu by phone and warned him of a threat from then-Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.

Fake News, and a Five-Word Denial

In direct response to publications claiming the central topic was an attempt to obscure past warnings, Netanyahu said: "Fake news. The visit dealt solely with strengthening relations between the two countries and regional challenges." Netanyahu's office denied that the prime minister requested that Abu Dhabi deny reports.

Netanyahu said on X that he would sue the Haaretz newspaper over the report, calling it "fabricated" and "false," and said he had instructed his lawyers to also sue Haaretz and the authors of the report, Shlomi Eldar and Ruth Yaval. He also denied its claims of a phone call with Sheikh Mohamed: "The National Security Council and the Military Secretary meticulously reviewed the Prime Minister's call log for those days - and found no trace of it whatsoever."

The Prime Minister's Office dismissed the Haaretz report as an "absolute lie," saying he "did not speak with the president of the United Arab Emirates during the relevant period and did not receive any warning from him."

What the Call Log Shows

The Prime Minister's Office said no conversation took place between Netanyahu and the UAE president from the start of September through 7 October. According to the statement, such calls are conducted only through an Emirati representative bringing an encrypted device to the Prime Minister's Office, with all conversations recorded, and a review of entry records showed no such representative entered the office during the period in question.

Confirming Haaretz's story, a senior Middle East intelligence source familiar with the secret channel between the UAE and Israel confirmed to Ynet that the Emirates "gave Israel a warning about the possibility of significant and imminent action by Hamas against it" before 7 October 2023.

The source said the information came from a "very reliable" source, that it was treated "very seriously" in Abu Dhabi, and that it indicated an operation could happen "very soon," though without a specific date. An Emirati source confirmed to The Times of Israel that Sheikh Mohamed called Netanyahu with the warning. The two accounts remain in direct dispute.

A Second Warning, From Cairo

Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel contacted Netanyahu around the same period and warned of "something unusual, a terrifying operation" being planned by Hamas, according to the Haaretz investigation. Netanyahu responded that Israel was in control of the situation in Gaza and was concentrating its attention and troop deployments on the West Bank.

Less than a week before the attack, then Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar met with Netanyahu on 1 October 2023 and recommended carrying out a targeted assassination of Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar, along with a series of additional assassinations targeting senior figures in the organization. According to a security source, Bar told Netanyahu that the Shin Bet had identified that Hamas was "preparing something extreme," and also used the term "earthquake" during the conversation.

The recommendation was put before the prime minister, but Netanyahu did not accept it. Both former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar and IDF chief of staff Herzi Halevi told Haaretz that they had not been informed of the warning delivered by the UAE president.

Four Weeks Before an Election

Israel is scheduled to hold legislative elections on 27 October 2026, to elect all 120 members of the 26th Knesset. Coalition head Ofir Katz told a parliamentary committee on Sunday 12 July that the original 27 October date set by law would be kept. The Knesset formally dissolved on 17 July 2026.

By completing its full four-year term, the 25th Knesset became the first Israeli legislature to serve its full duration without early dissolution since 1988, and the 37th government became the first to complete a full term since the 1973 election. According to polls, if elections were held today, Netanyahu and his allies would fall well short of a majority in the 120-seat Knesset, with the anti-Netanyahu bloc teetering on the edge of a majority itself.

Netanyahu's main challengers for the premiership are former general and Yashar party chair Gadi Eisenkot and Naftali Bennett, the ex-prime minister who heads the Together party. Bennett said the Haaretz report is "true," writing on X that Netanyahu's alleged disregard for the warnings amounts to "criminal negligence." Former prime minister Yair Lapid said: "If Netanyahu had fulfilled his role, the massacre would have been prevented."

The Accords That Made the Trip Possible

Israel and the UAE established diplomatic relations in 2020 under the US-brokered Abraham Accords and have maintained direct communication since. According to an official statement from the Prime Minister's Office, the visit took place at the personal invitation of UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed and included a summit meeting attended by the Mossad chief, the head of the National Security Council, the military secretary and the political adviser.

Discussions focused on strengthening strategic cooperation between the two countries and the complex regional challenges ahead. The Prime Minister's Office disclosed the composition of the delegation that accompanied Netanyahu to the Emirates: the prime minister and his wife Sara Netanyahu, the Mossad director, the head of the National Security Council, Major General Guy Markizano the military secretary, the head of the Shin Bet's security division, the political adviser, the flight crew and the security team.

Earlier in 2026 the UAE denied that Sheikh Mohamed met with Netanyahu after the latter's office said in May that the premier had "secretly visited" the Gulf country and met with the president. A source familiar with that meeting said the two met in Al-Ain, along the border with Oman, on 26 March.

What Is Not Known

No document, communique or joint statement has been published describing what was actually agreed in Abu Dhabi. The UAE Foreign Ministry declined to address the content of the meeting directly, and the Prime Minister's Office has gone no further than its official statement.

No decision has been reported on the Shin Bet complaint, and Channel 12 has not been charged. The duration of the meeting remains in dispute, with accounts describing it as about an hour, four hours, or about six hours. Whether the UAE warned Israel before 7 October 2023 is contested: Haaretz reported that it did, an Emirati source confirmed the call to The Times of Israel, and Netanyahu's office denies any such conversation took place.

Whether Netanyahu asked Sheikh Mohamed for a denial rests on a person said to have firsthand information about the meeting. The New York Times reported on Friday 25 September that Netanyahu received such a warning but did not pass it on to Israel's security chiefs. Former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar says he will sue Netanyahu over the claim that he chose to withhold warnings ahead of 7 October.

By Jessica Ali, Staff Writer

This article was produced with AI-assisted research and editorial support. Sources: Associated Press, Reuters, AFP, Al Jazeera, Anadolu Agency, KAN, Channel 12, JFeed, The Times of Israel, The Times of India, DW, CNN, The Jerusalem Post, Haaretz, i24NEWS, Ynetnews, The National, WAM, and the Prime Minister's Office.