Wingspan Whisperer

This morning's Haaretz bombshell article claims Netanyahu received a direct, explicit warning from UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed (MBZ) about 10 days before October 7, and never passed it on to Israel's security chiefs. The warning was that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was preparing a major operation against Israel. The warning reportedly stemmed from a secret backchannel, through which Israel and Hamas had been quietly negotiating a temporary truce and prisoner/hostage-body exchange throughout 2023, with Netanyahu's knowledge but repeated delays on his part. As talks stalled and Sinwar "vanished" in early September, he later used the same channel to warn twice that Hamas was preparing a "zilzal" (earthquake). This warning reached Israel's Shin Bet on September 15, triggering security meetings on September 17 and October 1, but no decisive action was taken. The article also reports on early, reportedly serious offers from Hamas (via the network of Mohammed Dahlan) to release all civilian hostages unconditionally in the days right after Oct 7, and a parallel Qatari mediation offer to the head of Mossad) both of which Israeli officials reportedly rebuffed or failed to take seriously), as the political and military leadership turned its focus on on destroying Hamas rather than negotiating with it. Israel elections are scheduled for Oct 27th.