CBS host John Dickerson on Sunday pressed Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about his motivations for using disproportional force to kill Palestinian people, including civilians and children.

"You are under investigation for bribery, fraud, breach of trust," Dickerson noted. "You've also had some difficult -- four failed attempts to put together a government in the last 23 months. This leads to the criticism that your current actions are basically an effort to stay in power."

"That's preposterous," Netanyahu insisted before telling a story about a soldier who "died in my arms."

"A few years later, my brother died while leading a rescue mission to release Israeli hostages," he continued. "I've seen comrades fall, I've seen my brother fall. And I think anybody who knows me knows that I've never, ever subordinated security concerns, the life of our soldiers, the life of our citizens for political interests."

"That's just hogwash," Netanyahu added.

"But this is a persistent criticism, Mr. Prime Minister," Dickerson explained.

"It persists because I've been reelected five times," Netanyahu remarked. "It persists because I beat every other candidate."