Diplomatic sources have revealed that the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the political bureau of the Palestinian movement Hamas, by Israel was requested by the UAE as part of Abu Dhabi’s plan to manage the “day after” the Israeli war on Gaza.
Sources informed that UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan initiated the request to senior Israeli officials, emphasizing the necessity of killing Haniyeh and eliminating all Hamas political leaders before Abu Dhabi’s involvement in managing Gaza.
The sources explained that the UAE, which announced weeks ago its full involvement in Israeli plans to manage Gaza after the war, stipulated that Israel must focus on eliminating Hamas leaders to ensure the success of its plans for Gaza.
According to the sources, the UAE officially requested through several channels that the Israeli government focus on eliminating Hamas leaders abroad, with Haniyeh as a top target, due to Israel’s failure to reach Hamas leaders within Gaza.
The UAE’s plan was directly and officially presented during a secret meeting, later disclosed by American media, held in Abu Dhabi on July 18, according to the same sources.
The meeting included UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed, representing his brother Mohammed bin Zayed, US officials Brett McGurk, President Biden’s Middle East advisor, and Tom Sullivan, a State Department advisor, as well as Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer, a close associate of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
During the meeting, Abdullah bin Zayed outlined the UAE’s comprehensive plan for managing Gaza, which includes deploying a multinational force with Emirati and Arab participation in the Strip to eliminate any form of Hamas rule and Palestinian resistance.
The plan involves appointing Mohammed Dahlan, an advisor to Mohammed bin Zayed, to oversee Gaza’s governance in the next phase, in full coordination with Israel, with Abu Dhabi financing humanitarian response plans to ensure the plan’s implementation.
Notably, the UAE conditioned its plan and relieving Tel Aviv of the burden of ruling Gaza after the war on the elimination of senior Hamas leaders to clear the way for Dahlan and Abu Dhabi’s mercenaries.
An Emirati official openly declared to the Financial Times a day after the tripartite meeting in Abu Dhabi that the UAE would be ready to be part of this international force and would send its troops to the field.
It is evident that this Emirati stance was announced immediately after receiving Israel’s approval for its request to assassinate senior Hamas leaders and commence the necessary coordination.
The American website Axios recently reported that Emirati officials want to be part of the solution in Gaza, provided it does not include Hamas, while also holding strong reservations towards the current leadership of the Palestinian Authority.
Netanyahu had previously stated that he wanted the Emiratis to be part of the “day after” plan for Gaza. He also wanted the UAE to send troops and fund the reconstruction and reform of Gaza’s education system to “remove extremism” from the population.
It is noteworthy that the UAE refrained from condemning Israel’s assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in the Iranian capital, Tehran, two days ago, merely issuing a statement expressing concern about the “continued escalation and its implications for regional security and stability,” without mentioning the Hamas political bureau chief by name.
It is well-known that the UAE, which has maintained a strategic alliance with Israel for decades and openly normalized relations with it in 2020, lists Hamas and its leaders as terrorists and views all Palestinian resistance factions with complete hostility.
