Netanyahu Denies Contacting Former Egyptian Intelligence Chief Regarding Warning Before October 7

Tel Aviv - Afaq News - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied today, Monday, a report by the "Wall Street Journal" regarding a call made by former Egyptian General Intelligence Chief Abbas Kamel to him in early October 2023, warning him of an imminent attack from the Gaza Strip.

Netanyahu's office stated that the Prime Minister intends to file a defamation lawsuit against the newspaper, describing what was published as a "false claim" and part of a media campaign that he said is supported by foreign countries.

In a statement issued by Netanyahu's office: "In the months leading up to October 7, Netanyahu did not meet with Abbas Kamel nor did he speak with him, nor did any Israeli intelligence official convey any Egyptian warning to the Prime Minister."

The statement added that Netanyahu "never met or spoke with the head of an intelligence agency from a foreign country without his Israeli counterparts."

Netanyahu's office accused unnamed parties of attempting to "cast all the failures and crimes of Ronen Bar, on the eve of October 7, onto the Prime Minister," referring to the former head of the Israeli Security Agency "Shabak" Ronen Bar.

Three Egyptian Warnings

According to a report by the "Wall Street Journal", the alleged call from Abbas Kamel was the third Egyptian warning regarding the situation in the Gaza Strip, following two previous warnings that Israel did not respond to.

According to the report, the first warning began in June 2023 and was general, as Egypt warned that the situation in the Gaza Strip was prone to explosion and encouraged Israel to resume negotiations with Hamas.

In September of the same year, Abbas Kamel traveled to Israel and conveyed a more serious warning to Israeli officials, stating that the situation in the Gaza Strip was difficult and could "explode in everyone's face". According to the report, Israeli officials responded that the situation was under control.

The report indicated that the Egyptian warnings continued until 48 hours before the attack on October 7.

Israeli reports had previously indicated that Egypt had conveyed multiple warnings to Israel before the attack, but the new report attributed to the American newspaper discusses an alleged direct communication between Abbas Kamel and Netanyahu in the days leading up to the attack.

Other warnings

The report added that Netanyahu also received, in September 2023, a warning about indicators of a potential attack during a call with the President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

According to the sources cited in the report, Netanyahu "did not seem convinced" by the warning. The sources clarified that the warnings did not include a specific date for the attack or its scale.

It also indicated that Arab intelligence agencies had detected a change in the tone and threats of the then-leader of Hamas in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, in addition to holding repeated meetings between Hamas and the Islamic Jihad movement in the sector.

According to published reports, the Egyptian warnings did not include specific details regarding the timing of the attack, its targets, or its scale, but rather focused on increasing indicators of a potential wide escalation from the Gaza Strip.

Netanyahu's office renews the denial.

Netanyahu's office had previously denied the existence of talks between the Prime Minister and Abbas Kamel in the months leading up to October 7, and Netanyahu also denied receiving a personal warning from the Emirati president.

According to the report, there have been no statements from the Egyptian and Emirati foreign ministries regarding these allegations.

In contrast, Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid stated that he attended security meetings with Netanyahu before October 7, and that intelligence information and warnings were discussed during those meetings.

Lapid added, in an interview with Channel "Kan", that placing the responsibility for the attack solely on the Israeli security agency is unacceptable, noting that several members of the agency were killed during the events of October 7.

The report comes two days after an investigation published by "The Atlantic" magazine, which discussed a secret visit by Abbas Kamel to Israel on September 26, 2023, during which he warned Israeli officials of an impending threat from the Gaza Strip.

Netanyahu's office also rejected that investigation, describing its contents as a "false claim" that had previously been denied.

The head of the Israeli National Security Council at the time, Tzachi Hanegbi, also denied to the magazine that Abbas Kamel had visited Israel or conveyed an Egyptian warning.

In 2023, the then-chairman of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, Michael McCaul, stated that Egypt had warned the Israelis three days before the attack about the possibility of such an event occurring.

The nature of the warnings that reached the Israeli leadership before the October 7 attack, the entities that received them, and how they were handled remain a point of contention between Israeli narratives and various media reports.