Israel pitched advanced drones to UAE, leaked emails reveal: Report
The UAE secretly pushed for the sale of Israeli drones by Elbit Systems following an attack on Abu Dhabi by Yemen’s Houthis in 2022, according to leaked emails reported by Haaretz and Drop Site News.
Emails dating from 2021 through early 2023 reveal that Elbit Systems, Israel’s largest defence contractor, had already begun discussing the sale of Hermes 900 drones, SkyEye wide-area surveillance sensors, ground control equipment, training, and logistical support.
The sale was described as “urgent” after the Houthis in Yemen launched a missile and drone attack on Abu Dhabi on 17 January 2022.
The emails from Elbit Systems’ executives were obtained by Handala, an online hacking group, with supposed links to the Iranian government. They were verified by both Haaretz and Drop Site News.
The initial drone sale was valued at $154m, with additional upgrades bringing it up to $225m. The leaked correspondence didn’t reveal whether the drones were delivered.
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SkyEye sensors comprise electro-optical cameras that allow a drone to record a vast area in real time at high resolution. The footage can be rewound through multiple viewpoints to trace objects back to their place of origin.
The Hermes 900 is an advanced Israeli reconnaissance and surveillance drone that has a payload of up to 990 pounds. According to reports, it can carry up to eight surface-to-air missiles.
The emails revealed that in March 2022 the head of research and development at the Israeli defence ministry's arms development directorate was travelling to the UAE with a proposal to sell Hermes 900 drones with "an operational solution for maintaining surveillance beyond the country's borders – detecting missile and drone launches into the country”.
At the time, the UAE had just suffered a missile and drone attack that targeted oil tanker trucks and the Abu Dhabi airport.
The UAE normalised relations with Israel approximately two years before, under the Abraham Accords. That agreement, brokered by Trump's first administration, was framed as an effort to bolster defence ties between Israel and the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco.
The emails also contain two references to the SkyStriker loitering munition and another drone, the Hermes 650.
The emails provide a rare window into the close defence ties between the UAE and Israel, along with the specific Israeli armaments and technical systems that analysts have long said entice Gulf states.
The UAE is one of the closest Arab and Muslim states to Israel, and joined it and the US in launching hundreds of strikes on Iran.
Middle East Eye revealed in May that Israel and the UAE have established a joint defence fund to acquire new weapons systems amid the war on Iran.
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