Two Palestinians suspected of the abduction and murder of three Israeli teenagers in June have been killed by Israeli forces, Israel's military says.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu eulogizes at the funeral for the three Israeli teens. Photo: REUTERS
A spokesman said troops searching for Marwan Qawasmeh and Amer Abu Aisha surrounded a building in the West Bank city of Hebron where they were hiding, the BBC reported.
"We opened fire, they returned fire and they were killed in the exchange," Lt Col Peter Lerner added.
The abduction of the teenagers was a trigger of the recent conflict in Gaza.
An Israeli military statement said Mr Qawasmeh and Mr Abu Aisha were traced to a house in Hebron early on Tuesday.
"During the operation, the terrorists opened fire at the security forces. The forces returned fire and the suspects were killed in the exchange."
The Israeli troops were reported to have used a rocket and a bulldozer in their assault.
The military initially said it had only confirmed that one of the suspects was killed. The other was also believed to dead, it added, although formal confirmation would have to wait until his body was recovered.
Chief of Staff Lt Gen Benny Gantz said: "We promised the [teenagers'] families that we would find the murderers. This morning, we did just that.
"This isn't a consolation for the grieving families," he reiterated, "but I hope that knowing we reached their children's murderers may slightly comfort them."
One of Mr Qawasmeh's relatives has already been charged with planning the teenagers' abduction.
