The United Arab Emirates publicly denied on Wednesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a covert wartime visit to the Gulf state, delivering a rare and unusually direct rebuke to one of Israel’s most sensitive diplomatic claims since the outbreak of the Iran conflict.
The denial came only hours after Netanyahu’s office announced that the Israeli leader had secretly traveled to the UAE during the height of the war with Iran and met President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in what Israeli officials described as a “historic breakthrough” in relations between the two countries.
But in a statement that appeared carefully calibrated to distance Abu Dhabi from the Israeli narrative, the UAE Foreign Ministry rejected the reports outright and emphasized that Emirati relations with Israel were conducted openly under the Abraham Accords and “not based on secrecy or clandestine arrangements.”
“Any claims regarding unannounced visits or undisclosed arrangements are entirely unfounded unless officially announced by the relevant authorities in the UAE,” the UAE Foreign Ministry said.
The diplomatic contradiction immediately drew attention across the Middle East, where the war involving Iran, Israel, and several Gulf states has transformed regional alliances and intensified domestic political pressure on Arab governments maintaining ties with Israel.
According to Israeli officials cited by Reuters and other international media organizations, Netanyahu allegedly met Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed in the Emirati city of Al Ain on March 26 during the peak of regional hostilities. Israeli officials portrayed the meeting as evidence that the UAE-Israel partnership had deepened dramatically under wartime conditions.
The reports also claimed that Mossad chief David Barnea made multiple visits to the UAE during the conflict to coordinate intelligence activities linked to Iran.
The UAE’s response suggested discomfort with the public disclosure of such wartime coordination, particularly at a moment when anti-Israel sentiment remains widespread across the Arab world because of the continuing devastation in Gaza and Israel’s expanding military operations across the region.
Since signing the Abraham Accords in 2020 under then-US President Donald Trump, the UAE has steadily expanded economic, intelligence, technological, and security ties with Israel. Yet Emirati officials have simultaneously attempted to present themselves as advocates for regional stability and defenders of Palestinian statehood, a balancing act that has grown increasingly difficult amid the wars in Gaza and Iran.
Regional analysts said Abu Dhabi’s unusually forceful denial likely reflected concern over domestic and regional backlash rather than a complete breakdown in UAE-Israel relations.
“The UAE wants the strategic benefits of relations with Israel without appearing publicly tied to Israeli military actions against Iran or Gaza,” said one Gulf analyst familiar with regional diplomacy. “The politics of visibility matter enormously in the Arab world right now.”
The Middle East crisis has accelerated a quiet but profound realignment across the region. Gulf monarchies that once cautiously engaged Israel primarily through economic channels have increasingly expanded military cooperation amid growing fears about Iran’s regional power and missile capabilities.
During the recent Iran conflict, Tehran launched missile and drone strikes against several Gulf states, including attacks targeting energy facilities and strategic infrastructure, according to multiple international reports.
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said earlier this week that Israel had deployed Iron Dome air defense batteries and personnel to the UAE during the war to help intercept Iranian attacks, further underscoring the depth of emerging military cooperation between the two countries.
That cooperation, however, remains politically explosive.
Across the Arab world, governments that normalized relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords have faced mounting criticism since Israel’s war in Gaza began in 2023. Palestinian groups and many Arab commentators accused Gulf governments of legitimizing Israel while Palestinians continued to suffer under bombardment and blockade.
The controversy surrounding Netanyahu’s alleged secret trip also unfolded as Israel faces increasing diplomatic isolation internationally. Netanyahu remains under scrutiny following accusations of war crimes connected to the Gaza conflict, allegations Israel strongly rejects.
Iranian officials reacted angrily to reports of the purported UAE meeting. Tehran has repeatedly warned Gulf governments against participating in any military or intelligence cooperation directed against Iran, describing such alliances as destabilizing and dangerous for the wider region.
Despite the UAE’s categorical denial, Israeli officials did not retract their claims. Several Israeli and Western media outlets continued reporting that the meeting took place, creating an unusual public dispute between two governments that have spent years carefully showcasing the success of normalization.
The episode revealed how even the closest emerging partnerships in the Middle East remain constrained by the political realities of a region still deeply fractured by war, sectarian rivalry, and the unresolved Palestinian issue.
For Abu Dhabi, the challenge now is preserving its strategic relationship with Israel and Washington while avoiding the appearance of becoming directly entangled in Israel’s expanding regional confrontations.
For Israel, meanwhile, publicizing the alleged meeting may have been intended to showcase growing Arab support during wartime. Instead, it exposed the limits of how openly those alliances can be acknowledged in a region where public opinion remains fiercely hostile to Israeli military actions.
As the Middle East enters a new phase of geopolitical uncertainty following the Iran conflict, the dispute over Netanyahu’s alleged visit underscored a broader truth shaping regional diplomacy: many of the alliances redefining the region remain strongest behind closed doors.
—Inputs from Sputnik.
