Hamas leader Mashaal admits Hamas kidnapped and murdered the 3 Israeli teens, and says it was justified
Interviewer: "You’ve referred to these men as “martyrs,” as heroes (i.e., the terrorist murderers). You said in the past few weeks that you were unaware of the plan to kidnap and kill these kids. But it sounds as though you’re saying it was perfectly appropriate to kidnap and kill three teenagers. Is that correct?"
Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal: "The answer is clear. When this operation took place last June, I then said in remarks to the media that we had no information. I could neither confirm nor deny. Later on, and as the Israeli investigations have shown, it turned out that a Hamas field group in the West Bank had killed those three settlers. So, this was indeed an operation executed by a Hamas group. We now have specific information. [The] question now is: Was this operation legitimate or not? This was a legitimate operation. Why? I told you. It is the right of the lawful owners of the land in the West Bank, whether they are from Hamas, or from some other group, to engage in resistance against the occupiers, whether they are the Israeli military or settlers. It’s as simple as that."
Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal: "The answer is clear. When this operation took place last June, I then said in remarks to the media that we had no information. I could neither confirm nor deny. Later on, and as the Israeli investigations have shown, it turned out that a Hamas field group in the West Bank had killed those three settlers. So, this was indeed an operation executed by a Hamas group. We now have specific information. [The] question now is: Was this operation legitimate or not? This was a legitimate operation. Why? I told you. It is the right of the lawful owners of the land in the West Bank, whether they are from Hamas, or from some other group, to engage in resistance against the occupiers, whether they are the Israeli military or settlers. It’s as simple as that."