Upping the Stakes in Gaza
The wire services are reporting that Israel has arrested several dozen Hamas parliment members, including the deputy prime minister. Of course the Guardian is engaging in typical hand wringing:

Can Israel's allies - I mean the US - allow it to take democratically elected officials hostage because one soldier is being held by as yet unknown parties within Gaza? Is there evidence that Hamas politicians are directly responsible for the kidnap? What was the soldier doing in Gaza? The latest press releases from CNN, CBS and Reuters suggest an all-out assault on Gaza from the land, air and sea, indicating that this has become more than a show of force to release one soldier.

The short answer: yes. Democratically elected or not, Hamas is at war with Israel. Hamas backed milities (sic) fire rockets daily into Israeli territory targeting civilians. Democratic elections doesn't give you a free pass to engage in terror.
- posted by Base10 @ 12:37 PM