Netanyahu Says He Filed Suits Over October 7 Warning Reports

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he has filed defamation lawsuits challenging reports that he received warnings from United Arab Emirates and Egyptian officials before Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack. His Likud party said the suits target Israeli media outlets and journalists, while Netanyahu denies that either government warned him. The allegations concern whether advance warnings reached Netanyahu and what they conveyed. The details remain disputed, and the accounts provided do not independently establish whether he received such warnings. Haaretz reported that UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed warned Netanyahu about a possible Hamas attack 10 days before October 7, after information had been relayed through an intermediary. The report said the warning was passed to Israel’s Shin Bet security service before bin Zayed raised it directly with Netanyahu. Netanyahu has denied receiving a UAE warning. Separate reports have alleged that Egypt’s then-intelligence chief, Abbas Kamel, contacted Netanyahu about the threat. Netanyahu says he neither met nor spoke with Kamel in the months before the attack.