Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a surprise visit to Abu Dhabi on Sunday and held talks with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, according to a senior Israeli official. The unannounced trip comes at a time of rising regional tensions and fresh questions about the relationship between the two countries.
Israeli media outlets including Channel 12, KAN, Haaretz and The Jerusalem Post confirmed that Netanyahu travelled to the UAE for a one day visit. Channel 12 reported that he flew on a private plane and spent the day in the capital. Neither Netanyahu’s office nor the UAE foreign ministry has issued any public comment so far.
The meeting takes place weeks after Haaretz claimed that Sheikh Mohamed had warned Netanyahu about a major planned Hamas operation roughly ten days before the October 7, 2023 attack. According to the newspaper, the warning was never shared with Israeli intelligence or the military. Netanyahu has strongly denied the report and threatened legal action against Haaretz. Opposition leaders have accused him of failing to act on information that could have prevented the attack.
The UAE has not responded directly to the warning claim. Officials have previously said that the country maintains open communication channels with Israel on security matters. A UAE source earlier told Reuters that such discussions usually take place through relevant agencies rather than at the highest leadership level.
This latest visit is especially notable because Abu Dhabi had denied earlier this year that Sheikh Mohamed met Netanyahu during the Iran conflict. That denial came after Netanyahu’s office claimed he had made a secret trip to the UAE in March and met the president in Al Ain.
Israel and the UAE normalised relations in 2020 through the Abraham Accords. Since then, the partnership has grown more important during regional conflicts. The UAE has strengthened its ties with both the United States and Israel, viewing the relationship as a useful channel for influence and security cooperation.
The reported meeting therefore sits against a complex background of close diplomatic links, ongoing regional instability, and continued debate inside Israel over what Netanyahu knew before the October 7 attack.
