Screen shot of Kuwaiti MP Hammad Al-Dosari. Photo: Youtube/MEMRI TV.

In candid interviews published with English subtitles by the Middle East Media Research Institute, two Kuwaiti Members of Parliament gave their approval for the kingdom to have dealings with Israel.

The interviews originally appeared on Al-Adala TV via the Internet between June 18-25, 2013.

In the first, MP Nabil Al-Fadhl insists that Israel is a legitimate trade partner, a position that is opposed throughout the Arab world, saying, “If the security of Kuwait requires the purchase of Israeli equipment, I will do so and I will love the Israelis for it.”

In the second interview, MP Hammad Al-Dosari is even more frank, making a case based on Islamic law, saying, “The shari’a permits us to have dealings with the Israelites.”

The full transcript of the interviews is posted below (courtesy of MEMRI):

MP Nabil Al-Fadhl: If the security of Kuwait requires the purchase of Israeli equipment, I will do so, and I will love the Israelis for it. It is permitted to deal with anyone for the sake of Kuwait’s security.

Interviewer: Even with Israelis?

MP Nabil Al-Fadhl: I will buy it from whoever is selling.

Interviewer: But these are the Zionists…

MP Nabil Al-Fadhl: So what? We’re talking about my country’s security. How exactly did the Muslims benefit us, when our Arab neighbor [Iraq] invaded our country? I am willing to buy equipment from Israel to protect my country from its Arab and Muslim neighbor.

[…]

Hammad Al-Dosari: The shari’a permits us to have dealings with the Israelites. We follow the example of the Prophet Muhammad, who died while his shield was mortgaged with a Jew.

Interviewer: Some people have criticized you for saying this.

Hammad Al-Dosari: Because they are ignorant about the sharia. I tell you that the Prophet Muhammad had dealings [with the Jews]. You criticize me?! Go criticize the Prophet Muhammad. A Muslim does not talk. He obeys the instructions of the Prophet Muhammad.

Watch  a video of the MPs below: