UAE-Israel Cyber Units Run Covert Psy-Ops Targeting Arab Public During Iran War
Reports expose joint Abu Dhabi-Tel Aviv operation spreading disinformation and sectarian propaganda via fake Saudi accounts to manipulate Arab sentiment
Watan-Media reports have revealed the involvement of cyber operations rooms established in Abu Dhabi—working in cooperation with Israeli intelligence units—in a coordinated psychological campaign targeting Arab public opinion during the Israeli assault on Iran.
According to the website Emirates Leaks, a team from Israel’s Aman military intelligence unit specializing in psychological warfare, along with personnel from Lahav 433 (Israel’s cybercrime and special investigations unit), participated in managing online operations aimed at deceiving Arab followers. The campaign used hundreds of fake accounts posing as Saudi users.
These operations, coordinated by the UAE’s State Security Agency, employed fabricated identities to promote the hashtag #Saudi_Stands_With_Israel, in an attempt to falsely portray Saudi Arabia as supportive of Israel’s aggression against Tehran. The messaging aimed to add a sectarian dimension to the conflict by framing Israel as a “common enemy of Sunnis.”
Emirati media outlets such as Sky News Arabia and Al-Ain News were also reportedly transformed into propaganda tools for the Israeli narrative—violating journalistic neutrality. Analysts view this shift as a form of complicity that goes beyond normalization, amounting to a calculated attack on Arab consciousness.
Growing concerns point to the expansion of these influence operations, which are seen as part of a regional strategy to reshape Arab public opinion in favor of new alliances led by Israel and supported by influential Arab regimes.
