I strongly believe in a God-given right to self-defense.

Multilateral organizations must respond by taking an unequivocable moral stand against terrorism. No cause can justify the deliberate taking of innocent human life, and the international community is nearing universal agreement on this truth. The vast majority of nations in this assembly now agree that tactics like suicide bombing, hostage-taking, and hijacking are never legitimate. This Security Council has passed resolutions declaring terror unlawful and requiring all nations to crack down on terrorist financing. And earlier this month, the Secretary-General held a conference to highlight victims of terror, where he stated that terrorism can never be justified.

Self-determination is now recognized as a principle of legitimacy underlying modern international law.

There's a right of self-defense here that's involved: We know the government has to respond, so we will not be subjected to these types of attacks in the future. But the response should be measured, restrained as much as possible, to protect innocent civilians. It should not just be military. We should pursue diplomatic ways, legal ways, any other ways we can address that.

I’m not an absolute pacifist. I think there are times when the use of military force is defensible […] Defending the Kurds against the ISIL attacks—yes, that’s legitimate.

If the principle is accepted that killing in defense of property and life is valid and mandatory, armed preparedness for war follows automatically.

If the representatives of the people betray their constituents, there is then no recourse left but in the exertion of that original right of self-defense which is paramount to all positive forms of government, and which against the usurpations of the national rulers may be exerted with infinitely better prospect of success than against those of the rulers of an individual State. In a single State, if the persons entrusted with supreme power become usurpers, the different parcels, subdivisions, or districts of which it consists, having no distinct government in each, can take no regular measures for defense. The citizens must rush tumultuously to arms, without concert, without system, without resource; except in their courage and despair.

Is [assassination] only justified if the target is a reactionary, anti-democratic, anti-human rights obscurantist like bin Laden?

Yeah. Everybody has the right to defend himself, but by attacking headquarter of President Arafat, this will lead to -- to the security of Israel? I doubt that.

To defend oneself is not only lawful but also an expression of love of country.

I similarly have the right to defend my own people. And I can say that no one, if they are a member of the United Nations, should act like a bull in a china shop. They must be guided by international principles, instead of engaging in pressure tactics and attempting to live at the expense of others.

To those who say that Israel has the right to defend itself, what right are you talking about exactly? Israel is the colonizing power. It is occupying our land. It is persecuting a whole people. Israel would ask you, “What would you have done if missiles were targeting your cities?” But Israel forgets that its occupation is the root cause of the violence. So I would like to ask you: What would you do if your territory is occupied, if your people were displaced, if your people were killed, detained, arrested, persecuted? How can an occupying power have the right to defend itself, when the whole people under occupation is deprived of the very same rights? How can some rush to issue statements to condemn the killing of one Israeli at a time when the whole world stays silent and turns a blind eye to the genocide of whole Palestinian families?

To be armed for personal defence is the right of every man, to be armed to defend freedom and the existence of the common fatherland is the right of every citizen

The real cause of what is happening now is a terrorist attack. If Britain or any other country was attacked by terrorists, we would believe, and rightly so, that we have every right to defend ourselves, to get back hostages and to protect our citizens.
Israel is no different. It has every right to defend itself. [...]
Of course, it has to abide by international rules of engagement.