Gaza Truce in Tatters, Obama Blames Hamas

At the Wall Street Journal, "Israeli Soldier Goes Missing, Possibly Taken Captive":

Israeli forces spread across southern Gaza in search of a missing infantry officer who was presumed captured by militants Friday, as President Barack Obama blamed Hamas for the quick breakdown of a U.S.-brokered cease-fire.

The officer's fate added a volatile element to Israel's conflict with Hamas, with the potential to draw the military deeper into a densely populated Palestinian enclave largely devastated by 25 days of combat. If confirmed, his capture could give Hamas, the Islamist group that governs Gaza, powerful new leverage in its effort to end the fighting on its terms.

The officer, 2nd Lt. Hadar Goldin, disappeared in a fierce battle for control of an underground tunnel shaft that left two Israeli soldiers dead near Rafah, the military said. Israel responded with air and artillery strikes that leveled homes and killed at least 35 people in and around the city of Rafah, mostly women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

The fighting shattered a cease-fire, brokered by the U.S. and United Nations, that was barely 90 minutes old. Speaking at the White House, Mr. Obama expressed pessimism that an agreement to end the violence could be reached soon, and called on Hamas to release the soldier unconditionally and as soon as possible, although neither Israel nor Hamas have confirmed his capture.

"I think it's going to be very hard to put a cease-fire back together again if Israelis and the international community can't feel confident that Hamas can follow through on a cease-fire commitment," he said at a news conference.

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