Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s former chief of staff and spokesman, Ziv Agmon, said Thursday that Netanyahu had been welcomed “with the honor reserved for kings” during a previously undisclosed wartime visit to the United Arab Emirates.
Agmon, who said he accompanied Netanyahu on the trip, described the visit as “top secret until today” and said UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the ruler of Abu Dhabi, personally greeted the Israeli delegation in the emirate.
“Sheikh bin Zayed, his family members and other dignitaries welcomed us and were happy to see the prime minister of Israel on their soil,” Agmon posted on Instagram.
According to Agmon, the Emirati leader personally drove Netanyahu from the aircraft to the palace in his own vehicle.
“The things the prime minister achieved during this amazing visit will be spoken about for generations,” Agmon wrote. “A tremendous success.”
The comments came a day after the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem announced that Netanyahu had “secretly visited” the UAE during “Operation Roaring Lion/Epic Fury,” the joint U.S.-Israeli campaign against Iran, describing the trip as a “historic breakthrough” in bilateral ties.
The UAE Foreign Ministry officially denied the claim, saying Abu Dhabi had not hosted Netanyahu or an Israeli military delegation during the war. The UAE normalized ties with Israel under the 2020 Abraham Accords and has since expanded economic and security cooperation with Jerusalem.
Meanwhile, Israel’s Kan public broadcaster reported on Friday that IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir also visited the United Arab Emirates during the war with Iran. Kan reported that Zamir was accompanied by senior military officials and met with Emirati leaders. The IDF declined to comment on the report.
Israeli media have also reported that the heads of the Shin Bet and Mossad visited the Gulf state during the war. U.S. officials confirmed reports that Israel had deployed an Iron Dome air-defense battery to the UAE, along with Israeli personnel to operate the system.
