Ex-PA Official to Reveal Secret Pre-7 October Contacts Between Israel and Hamas
Former PA official Dr. Sufian Abu Zaida announced he will reveal details of pre-war secret contacts between Israel and Hamas, including a direct message from Yahya Sinwar before October 7.
Former Palestinian Authority official Dr. Sufian Abu Zaida announced that he will soon reveal details of secret indirect contacts between Israel and Hamas, including a direct message from late Gaza leader Yahya Sinwar shortly before the October 7 attacks.
Secret Contacts and Sinwar's Message
In a video posted on Facebook, Abu Zaida stated that he mediated indirect talks for about a year and a half before the war, aimed at achieving a humanitarian arrangement and a prisoner exchange. According to Abu Zaida, the negotiations involved freeing Israeli hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, lifting the blockade on Gaza, allowing workers into Israel, and resolving infrastructure issues such as water and electricity.
Abu Zaida noted that he will also disclose the specific message that Sinwar asked him to convey to the Israeli leadership, though he did not detail its precise content in the teaser video.
Intelligence Miscalculations
The revelation aligns with previous reports that weeks before October 7, Sinwar transmitted a confidential message to Israeli authorities. At the time, top political and security officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, discussed the warning.
The intelligence leadership adopted a flawed conceptual assessment, assuming Sinwar was threatening unrest over prisons or the case of detained researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov rather than an imminent military invasion.
Prior Warnings and Investigation
Abu Zaida, 66, a former minister for prisoner affairs and an analyst familiar to Israeli media, stated his upcoming testimony will shed light on how messages from Gaza were interpreted and missed by Israeli intelligence ahead of the October 7 massacre.
