Why Netanyahu leaked his secret wartime visit to the UAE

Why Netanyahu leaked his secret wartime visit to the UAE Submitted by Ali Bakir on Thu, 05/21/2026 - 13:19 By going public with a meeting Abu Dhabi wanted kept quiet, Netanyahu trapped the Emiratis between domestic embarrassment and the regional cost of their Israel ties Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at a ceremony in Jerusalem, Israel, 21 April 2026 (Ilia Yefimovich/Pool/Reuters) On On 13 May, Benjamin Netanyahu's office issued a brief yet dramatic statement saying that, during the war with Iran , the Israeli prime minister had "secretly visited" the United Arab Emirates and met President Mohammed bin Zayed in what it described as a "historic breakthrough". Hours later, the UAE foreign ministry pushed back with unusual sharpness, calling the report "entirely unfounded" and reminding the world that Emirati-Israeli relations operate openly under the 2020 Abraham Accords . The Emiratis were reportedly furious over the disclosure.