A leaked document obtained by the EmirateLeaks outlet has revealed an Emirati government proposal to use UAE bases in the Red Sea to provide direct military, intelligence, and logistical support to Israel throughout its war on Gaza. 

The document dates back to October 2023 and is addressed to the Joint Operations Command of the UAE Armed Forces. It was written by Hamdan bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, Representative of the Al-Dhafra Region and Chairman of the UAE Red Crescent Authority.

“With the [7 October] terrorist … attacks on the sister state of Israel, and based on the historic agreement stipulating cooperation between the two countries … and in implementation of the order issued by the UAE Joint Operations Command to support the State of Israel through military bases in the southern Red Sea region – Al-Mokha on Yemen’s western coast, as well as Massawa and Assab in Eritrea and Somalia – swift preparations and readiness were undertaken to provide our military bases in the southern Red Sea, especially in Yemen, with everything necessary to support the State of Israel,” the document starts out by saying. 

The document explicitly calls for the UAE to “strengthen Israel in its war on the terrorists in Palestine,” and for that support to continue “until the terrorists are defeated.”

The leaked document also calls for the continuation of “community initiatives” to enhance “social cohesion” between the two states. 

It also calls for “close, cohesive, and integrated” cooperation in “counterterrorism, intelligence sharing, and military technology, and “confirms the provision of intelligence equipment and devices to Israel worth one billion dollars.”

It goes on to criticize Qatari support for Hamas, and accuses Kuwait of acting “alongside Qatar” in “providing massive financial support to fighting groups in Palestine,” while calling this a “clear contradiction to our state’s policies and to the agreements between our state and Kuwait.”

“There is ample room to cite our previous ties with the State of Israel, which obligate us to cooperate with it and come to its aid, to rally in its support in times of adversity and prosperity alike. The United Arab Emirates and the State of Israel are linked by close cultural, diplomatic, economic, and security relations, and these relations have intensified since the historic agreement of 2020,” it says.

The UAE officially normalized ties with Israel in 2020, when the US-brokered Abraham Accords were signed. Washington and Tel Aviv have been pushing for Saudi Arabia and other Arab states to join the Abraham Accords.

In the years that followed the start of the Saudi-led war on Yemen in 2015, the UAE military established a widespread occupation of Yemeni ports, islands, and waterways – carried out in coordination with Israel. 

The UAE has also established military bases along the coast of Somalia. 

Since the genocide in Gaza began, Abu Dhabi – now Israel’s top Arab trade partner –  has continued to pursue a strategic military relationship with Tel Aviv. 

In 2024, Balkan Insight revealed that a UAE-linked firm, Yugoimport-SDPR, exported $17.1 million worth of weapons to Israel via military aircraft. These weapons were directly involved in the genocidal war on Gaza.

Emirati firms have also signed deals with XM Cyber – co-founded by a former Mossad chief – to secure national energy infrastructure. XM Cyber works in tandem with Rafael and other elite Israeli military firms as part of a consortium targeting sensitive Gulf markets, including oil, energy, and data.

Additionally, the UAE’s state-owned defense giant EDGE holds shares in top Israeli arms manufacturers, including Rafael and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI).