Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, met Sunday with Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the president of the United Arab Emirates, during an unannounced visit to Abu Dhabi, according to a senior Israeli official who spoke to Reuters. Neither Netanyahu’s office nor the UAE Foreign Ministry immediately provided details about the meeting.

The visit comes as Israel and the UAE maintain diplomatic and security ties established through the 2020 Abraham Accords. The two countries have continued to communicate on regional security issues despite tensions surrounding the war in Gaza and broader conflicts involving Iran and its regional allies.

The meeting also comes shortly after an Israeli newspaper reported that Sheikh Mohammed warned Netanyahu in September 2023 that Hamas was preparing a major operation against Israel. According to the report, the warning was not passed to Israeli intelligence agencies or the military.

Netanyahu has denied that account and threatened legal action against the newspaper. The UAE has declined to comment specifically on the report but has said that Abu Dhabi and Jerusalem have maintained “open and direct lines of communication” since establishing diplomatic relations.

The reported warning has become politically significant in Israel because Netanyahu is facing criticism over the security failures surrounding Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack. Opposition figures have argued that the government bears responsibility for failures that allowed the attack to occur, while Netanyahu has rejected accusations that he was warned about the specific Hamas operation in advance.

The UAE has previously said that it handles security discussions with other countries through the appropriate government entities rather than directly between national leaders. That statement has added to questions surrounding the reported 2023 warning.

Sunday’s meeting was also notable because of uncertainty surrounding an earlier reported Netanyahu visit to the UAE. In May, Netanyahu’s office said he had secretly traveled to the country and met with Sheikh Mohammed, while the UAE initially denied that the two leaders had met. A source familiar with the matter later told Reuters that the two men met March 26 in Al-Ain, an oasis city near the UAE’s border with Oman.

The UAE has strengthened its security relationships with both Israel and the United States since coming under attack during the Iran war. Its diplomatic relationship with Israel has also provided Abu Dhabi with a direct channel for engagement with Washington and a role in regional security discussions.

The two governments have not publicly disclosed what Netanyahu and Sheikh Mohammed discussed during Sunday’s meeting.