Since signing the Abraham Accords in 2020, the United Arab Emirates has gone far beyond diplomatic normalisation with Israel. What began as a political alignment has evolved into a deep, complex network of influence within Israel’s political and security establishment—built not on shared values, but on money, strategic manipulation, and covert protection deals.
This influence isn’t limited to official state-level cooperation. It runs through a multi-layered system of covert funding, aimed at buying loyalty, shaping decision-making, and securing long-term protection for Abu Dhabi.
Soft Power Fronts: Glossy Institutions, Hidden Agendas
Abu Dhabi operates through a two-faced strategy. On the surface, organisations like Hedayah, Forum for Promoting Peace, and Sawab Center brand themselves as champions of “counter-extremism” and “tolerance.”
But beneath the polished rhetoric lies a calculated mechanism: strategic funding to shape pro-UAE narratives within Israeli and American power circles.
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- Sponsoring conferences
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- Distributing academic awards
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- Establishing research centres
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- Backing interfaith forums
All of these have served as tools for soft penetration into Tel Aviv’s elite policy-making spaces.
Yet this funding is far from benign. Disguised as “thought leadership” and “dialogue,” it has been channelled to far-right Zionist pressure groups that share Abu Dhabi’s hostility toward Islamic movements, seek to criminalise Palestinian resistance, and justify authoritarianism in the region.
The Bennett Connection: Al-Nuaimi’s Quiet Hand
A major shift occurred in 2021, when Naftali Bennett became Israel’s Prime Minister.
Emirati advisor Ali Rashid Al-Nuaimi, a close confidant of Mohammed bin Zayed, played a central role in strengthening ties with Bennett’s inner circle—especially his chief of staff, Tal Gan-Tzvi.
This led to the creation of secret financial channels, funnelling Emirati money through legally registered organisations affiliated with key Israeli political players—without appearing in any official capacity.
Funds were laundered through “joint programs” involving ideological think tanks such as:
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- Kohelet Policy Forum
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- Shiloh Policy Forum
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- Institute for Zionist Strategies
Despite posing as “research centres,” these groups have been the ideological engine behind Israel’s far-right legislation:
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- Attacking judicial independence
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- Expanding illegal settlements
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- Weakening the Israeli Supreme Court
With Emirati backing, these institutions expanded internationally, opening offices in Brussels and Washington—promoting Israel’s official narrative while masking their Gulf funding sources.
Political Deals Behind Closed Doors
In return for its financial largesse, Abu Dhabi wasn’t just buying influence—it was buying protection.
Naftali Bennett reportedly gave Mohammed bin Zayed direct assurances, including:
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- Recruiting AIPAC (America’s most powerful pro-Israel lobby)
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- Using its influence in Washington to shield the UAE from criticism over human rights abuses in Yemen, Libya, and Sudan
Unpublicised meetings were also held between representatives of these UAE-linked institutions and Republican Party insiders, aiming to secure continued White House support for the UAE—regardless of regional war crimes or authoritarianism.
The January 2025 Secret Meeting
According to confirmed sources, a secret meeting took place in January 2025 between Bin Zayed and Bennett, discussing the future of their joint influence network in light of:
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- Netanyahu’s internal instability
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- The waning grip of Israel’s right-wing coalition
Bennett reportedly reassured Bin Zayed:
“Everything is under control,” citing loyalty within Shin Bet (Shabak) as a guarantee of continued protection.
But Bin Zayed wasn’t convinced. Intelligence coming from Tel Aviv warned that the exposure of even a single funding channel could collapse the entire network—leading to scandals and legal consequences in Israel, Europe, and the United States.
For Abu Dhabi, this relationship is not merely strategic—it is existential. Losing Tel Aviv’s trust would mean losing one of the key international shields propping up its fragile regime.
The Intellectual Complicity
What’s more disturbing is the complicity of Israeli academic and intellectual elites who not only legitimised this foreign interference—but were rewarded for doing so:
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- Prestigious prizes
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- Generous scholarships
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- Lavish sponsorships
A Dangerous Web of Political Extortion
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- Money
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- Political extortion
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- Covert alliances
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- Research institutes as cover for lobbying
This web undermines transparency in Israel and threatens regional power balances. In practical terms, it means an authoritarian regime now holds real leverage over one of the region’s most militarised states.
As public anger over elite corruption grows across the Arab world, one question remains:
How long can this network stay in the shadows?
