Likud on Wednesday alleged that a disputed report claiming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu received an Emirati warning ahead of the October 7 massacre was part of an attempt by foreign actors to interfere in Israel’s election.
“The real affair that has emerged over the past two days is blatant foreign interference in the Israeli elections,” the party said in a statement, accusing UAE-based Palestinian politician Mohammed Dahlan of being behind the Haaretz report.
Likud did not present evidence establishing that Dahlan was involved in the reporting or its publication. It claimed that Dahlan wants Netanyahu’s government removed because he hopes to take control of the Gaza Strip and would benefit from a future Israeli government willing to withdraw from the territory.
The party also targeted journalist Shlomi Eldar, who published the report with Ruth Yuval, claiming that Eldar had received payment from a left-wing nonprofit associated with Yair Golan’s Democrats party to disseminate what Likud described as “fake news.” The statement did not provide evidence that the alleged payment was connected to the Haaretz report.
Likud also pointed to visits to the United Arab Emirates about two months ago by Golan and former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, asking whether the trips were connected to the publication. It offered no evidence of such a link.
The party called for a criminal investigation into Eldar, Yuval, Haaretz, Golan and the Democrats party over what it described as suspected efforts to disrupt the election in coordination with foreign actors.
Yair Golan
(Photo: Yariv Katz)
The accusations came hours after Netanyahu said he had instructed his lawyers to take legal action against Haaretz and Eldar over the report. He has denied that UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed warned him before October 7 that then-Hamas Gaza leader Yahya Sinwar was planning a major attack.
Netanyahu said checks of his call records and records of visitors to the Prime Minister’s Office found no evidence that such a conversation took place. He called the report a “malicious fabrication” with “obvious political timing.”
Haaretz has said it stands by its reporting.
A senior Middle Eastern intelligence official previously told ynet that the UAE had indeed conveyed a warning, but did not say how it was delivered or whether bin Zayed personally discussed it with Netanyahu. The UAE has declined to confirm or deny the reported conversation, saying only that relevant intelligence was conveyed when necessary.