For weeks, Israel has been engaged in intense discussions over how to respond to France’s push to recognize a Palestinian state with the possibility of annexing parts of the West Bank also under consideration. However, one warning, described by Israeli officials as extraordinary, may have prompted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to step back—or at least reconsider his approach—despite pressure from his coalition partners.

The public warning came last Tuesday when the United Arab Emirates cautioned Israel and the international community that any move to annex the West Bank would constitute a red line for Abu Dhabi and severely damage the Abraham Accords, which normalized relations between the two countries. The warning was issued via Reuters by Lana Nusseibeh, the UAE’s Assistant Minister for Political Affairs and envoy of the UAE foreign minister, who has been a vocal advocate for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

According to three sources familiar with the matter, the warning was preceded by a series of behind-the-scenes messages from the Emirates to Israel. Two of those sources, speaking to The Washington Post, said the public statement came after Abu Dhabi grew frustrated by Netanyahu’s lack of response to secret appeals.

The UAE also felt that, in addition to Israel’s silence, the Trump administration had quietly backed Israel. According to the sources, it appeared that the Americans were “following Netanyahu” rather than clearly stating Washington’s longstanding policy, since 1993, of supporting the establishment of a Palestinian state that includes parts of the West Bank.

An Israeli official acknowledged that Nusseibeh’s statement caught Israel off guard. “The UAE had expressed their concerns about annexation through other channels, but this statement came as a surprise. It’s very unusual,” the official told the Post. And that exceptional, unexpected warning appears, at least for now, to have achieved its effect.

Two days later, last Thursday, Israel was scheduled to hold a discussion on the contentious issue, but instead conducted a general situational assessment of the West Bank with the annexation issue officially removed from the agenda just hours before the meeting.

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