Israelske etterforskere tror de to som bortførte tre israelske studenter fikk panikk da de oppdaget at en av dem hadde rukket å ringe politiet og at de deretter skjøt dem.

Opprinnelig så de bare en av ungdommene ved haikestedet. De var på utkikk etter et gissel som kunne brukes som forhandlingskort. Men da de stanset så de at det var tre ungdommer. Det kompliserte situasjonen.

Recognizing, too late, that the car was not an innocent Israeli vehicle, one of the teens called the police at 10:25 p.m. and whispered, “We’ve been kidnapped.” The call was transferred immediately to a senior female officer, who continued to ask questions but received no reply. The call lasted for 2:09 minutes and was then cut off. The officer called the number eight more times, but received three busy signals and reached voicemail five times.

The kidnappers, apparently realizing that a call had been made, shot the three teens dead soon afterwards in the backseat of the car, military sources said.

..

Early assessments by some regarding the professionalism of the terrorists appear to have been misplaced: the killers seem to have panicked. The three teens did not fulfill the role Hamas sought for them, security officials indicated, to serve as bargaining chips that would free thousands of Palestinians prisoners and promote the Hamas brand throughout the West Bank.

http://www.timesofisrael.com/what-happened-on-the-night-of-the-kidnapping/