Netanyahu announces planned libel lawsuit over Haaretz report claiming UAE warned of Oct. 7

SEPTEMBER 9, 2026 10:33Updated: SEPTEMBER 9, 2026 10:48Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed his lawyers to issue a libel lawsuit against Haaretz following a recent report in which it claimed that he had been warned by the United Arab Emirates about Hamas's October 7 attack, the Prime Minister's Office announced on Wednesday.The lawsuit will also target Shlomi Eldar, the journalist who reported the story for Haaretz.The PMO stated that the story was completely fabricated and that there had been no communication between Netanyahu and the UAE from the start of September 2023 until the October 7 attack."A thorough examination not only of the Prime Minister's call log, but also of the records of entries into the Prime Minister's Office during this period, does not show any entry of the Emirati representative into the Prime Minister's Office," the PMO said.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President of the UAE Sheikh bin Zayed Al Nahyan. (credit: .Abdulla Al Neyadi / UAE Presidential Court/Handout, ILLUSTRATIVE)The report, the PMO stated, was part of a "sinister plot with clear political timing, as part of the left's election campaign," warning that there would be "more such false plots."PMO blames Ronen Bar, Herzi Halevi for October 7The announcement also directed blame for October 7 at Ronen Bar and Herzi Halevi, claiming that they had seen the signs of the massacre hours before the attack began, and accusing them of not informing Netanyahu in time.In response to the PMO's announcement of the lawsuit, Haaretz stated that it stood by its report.This is a developing story.Follow us on Google