Israeli opposition politician Yair Golan has joined criticism of Benjamin Netanyahu over warnings before the October 7, 2023 attack, accusing the premier of “criminal abandonment” and demanding his replacement.
Golan, leader of the Democrats party and a former Israeli army deputy chief of staff, alleged in a post on X that Netanyahu deliberately concealed a warning from United Arab Emirates President Mohammed bin Zayed.
“He knew. He was warned,” Golan wrote. “This is no lapse in judgment, but a deliberate and criminal abandonment.”
A Haaretz investigation reported that the Emirati leader warned Netanyahu about Hamas’ plans days before the attack, but the premier did not inform security chiefs.
Netanyahu’s office denied that he had spoken with the UAE president during the relevant period or received a warning, according to the Jerusalem Post.
Accusing Netanyahu of ignoring repeated warnings
Golan alleged that Netanyahu had deliberately withheld the information from the military and the Shin Bet domestic security agency, saying the findings shattered the premier’s account of the events preceding the attack.
He accused Netanyahu of ignoring repeated warnings from both the security establishment and anti-government protesters who said his policies were endangering Israel.
“He was warned again and again. The security establishment warned,” Golan wrote.
“We warned — hundreds of thousands of democrats who stood in squares, on bridges, and in streets and cried out: You are endangering Israel and leading us to disaster.”
Golan said Netanyahu had responded by calling them “anarchists and Kaplanists”, while prioritising his own political survival and backing “the draft dodgers and the extremists”.
‘Netanyahu is unfit and illegitimate’
Invoking the deaths of Israelis, including soldiers, Golan argued that Netanyahu was no longer fit to govern.
“Now it’s clear: Netanyahu is unfit and illegitimate. His place is in prison for his crimes against the State of Israel,” he wrote.
“We must replace him now!”
The accusations come ahead of Israel’s upcoming elections and echo criticism from former prime minister Naftali Bennett, who also endorsed the report and accused Netanyahu of “criminal negligence”.
In his own post on X, Bennett said Netanyahu had failed to alert security chiefs, convene the cabinet or prepare the country, and accused him of blocking a state commission of inquiry into the failures.
