Inside the mind of Hamas' political leader

As fighting rages between Israel and Hamas militants in Gaza, Hamas' political leader, who lives in Qatar, sat down with CNN for an exclusive interview.

Khaled Meshaal, a 58-year-old former teacher, has had the role since 2004, after Hamas' then-leader, Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi, was killed in an Israeli airstrike.

Meshaal is known as Hamas' external deal-maker, raising money from supporters in the region.

He spoke with CNN's Nic Robertson, who asked tough questions. Here are some highlights of the interview.

Firing rockets from neighborhoods

Robertson asked Meshaal why Hamas is firing rockets from civilian neighborhoods. Meshaal answered with numbers.

Israeli spokesman responds to Hamas

"How many Israeli civilians have our rockets killed? Israel knows the number. Meanwhile, how many Palestinians has Israel killed? Up until now have been killed 1700 people, while we have killed 63 soldiers. We kill soldiers, while they kill civilians."

(The Palestinian death toll as of Monday was at least 1,856, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. Sixty-four Israeli soldiers and three civilians in Israel had been killed, according to Israeli officials.)

Robertson then asked Meshaal to respond to critics who say Hamas is using civilian deaths to gain international sympathy.

Meshaal called that a lie and said Hamas is not seeking international sympathy through its own victims.

"It is unfortunate that the American administration and President Obama have adopted the Israeli narrative, which is a lie. Hamas sacrifices itself for its people and does not use its people as human shields to protect its soldiers. The fighter, just like the soldier in the army, his job is to protect the people, and not to sacrifice the people for himself."