Overview
- A senior Emirati official told The National on Sunday, September 20, 2026, that the UAE does not convey sensitive operational warnings at the level of national leaders and that such matters are handled by professional agencies.
- Israel’s Prime Minister’s Office says its review of Netanyahu’s communications records found no evidence of a conversation with the UAE president between early September 2023 and October 7, 2023.
- Investigative journalists Shlomi Eldar and Ruth Yuval stand by their book report that described a roughly 45‑minute late‑September 2023 call arranged with a special Emirati communications app and an embassy representative.
- Netanyahu has strongly denied the reported call, labeled the account a fabrication, and instructed lawyers to pursue defamation proceedings against the journalists and their publisher.
- The dispute sharpens wider questions about whether relevant intelligence was shared at agency levels before Oct. 7, feeds election‑period political fights in Israel, and increases pressure for independent review of pre‑attack warnings and decision making.