UPDATE: UAE Denies Bombshell Scoop About Secret Netanyahu Visit

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a meeting with President Donald Trump in the Blue Room of the White House, Monday, July 7, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

CBS News senior White House reporter Jennifer Jacobs dropped a major scoop on Wednesday, alongside national security reporter James LaPorta: that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a secret trip to the United Arab Emirates during the Iran war.

CBS reported that Netanyahu made the trip “recently” and met with UAE leader Mohammed bin Zayed. The report added that Netanyahu’s office confirmed the trip in a statement, saying it “resulted in a historic breakthrough in relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.”

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee confirmed on Tuesday that Israel had sent Iron Dome missile defense systems to the UAE to help protect the country against Iranian attacks. Iran has targeted Dubai and energy infrastructure in the UAE as the Iran war has continued.

Netanyahu previously traveled to the UAE in 2018, and in 2020, the UAE was the first country to normalize relations with Israel as part of the Abraham Accords.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that the United Arab Emirates “has carried out military strikes on Iran,” citing “people familiar with the matter.”

The explosive report is the first time since the war began that the UAE has been implicated as an active combatant in the war, joining the U.S., Iran, and Israel as a primary actor.

Update: The UAE later denied the report, calling it “entirely unfounded.”

“The UAE reaffirms that its relations with Israel are public and conducted within the framework of the well-known and officially declared Abraham Accords, and are not based on non-transparent or unofficial arrangements. Accordingly, any claims regarding unannounced visits or undisclosed arrangements are entirely unfounded unless officially announced by the relevant authorities in the UAE,” said the UAE’s foreign ministry in a statement.

“The UAE calls on media outlets to exercise accuracy and professionalism, and to refrain from circulating unverified information or promoting misleading political narratives,” concluded the statement.

CBS News updated its story to reflect the UAE’s denial and added some key context, writing, “Any visit from Israeli officials could potentially create some domestic civil unrest for the Emiratis.”

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