Leaked Documents Reveal Scale of Arms Deals Between Israel and UAE

Leaked documents from Israel's Elbit Systems reveal the scale of arms deals between Israel and the UAE, including advanced drones and bunker-busting bombs. The documents indicate that the UAE ordered 45 'Hermes 900' drones in a deal worth $1.3 billion, and that Israeli sales to Abraham Accords countries reached $3 billion last year. The documents were published by a hacker group affiliated with Iranian intelligence.

Leaked documents from Israel's Elbit Systems reveal the scale of arms deals between Israel and the UAE, according to a report published by Haaretz today. The documents, which leaked from the personal email of the sales manager and were published by a hacker group affiliated with Iranian intelligence, show the company's approval in March 2022 of an urgent UAE request to purchase weapons, including advanced drones. The deals include Hermes 900 drones for intelligence gathering, 'SkyStriker' suicide drones, and MPR-2000 bombs capable of penetrating bunkers. The documents indicate that the UAE requested the purchase of 45 Hermes 900 drones in a deal worth approximately $1.3 billion. They also reveal another deal named 'Yasmine 3' to manufacture 6,000 kits, and a potential deal for Hermes 650 drones. Israeli arms sales to Abraham Accords countries reached $3 billion last year, and about $9 billion since 2021. The documents point to information security flaws in the company, as emails were exchanged from at least two personal addresses. Elbit has not officially announced most of these deals, except for a $50 million deal in early 2022 and a large $2.3 billion deal last November, which a French magazine suggests the customer is the UAE.