Abu Dhabi / Jerusalem — September 28, 2026

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made an unannounced trip to Abu Dhabi to meet United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Associated Press reported.

The two leaders held an hourlong meeting on Sunday, September 27, according to two people briefed on the trip who spoke to AP. Israel’s Channel 12 television first reported the visit, AP said.

The meeting came amid a dispute over a report published earlier this month by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. It alleged that the Emirati leader had warned Netanyahu of a looming Hamas attack before the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023. The alleged warning has not been independently confirmed.

Netanyahu’s office previously denied the Haaretz report. A person claiming first-hand knowledge of the meeting told AP that Netanyahu asked Sheikh Mohamed to deny the report. That account comes from an unnamed source; neither government has published a full agenda for the talks.

It is unclear whether the UAE president agreed to issue any denial. The UAE Foreign Ministry declined to comment on reports of the meeting, while saying it maintains open and direct communication with Israel and shares relevant intelligence.

Netanyahu’s office had no immediate comment when AP published its report. Other issues discussed during the visit and any agreements reached have not been publicly detailed.

Israel and the UAE established formal diplomatic relations after the U.S.-brokered Abraham Accords in 2020. Since then, ties in trade, tourism, investment and security have grown.

Questions about what Israeli leaders and security agencies knew before the October 7 attacks, and how any warnings were handled, remain politically contentious in Israel. Netanyahu’s side denies the specific Haaretz allegation of a personal warning from the UAE leader.

Image caption: Supplied composite image of UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It was not taken at the September 27 meeting.

Source: Associated Press, September 28, 2026. The alleged advance warning remains a disputed Haaretz report and has not been independently verified.