In its quest to crush Hamas, Israel will confront the bitter, familiar dilemmas of Mideast wars
By JOSEPH KRAUSS
Associated Press
JERUSALEM (AP) — As Israel escalates its war on Hamas, it will confront many of the same dilemmas it has grappled with over decades of conflict with the Palestinians. Israeli leaders have pledged to annihilate the Hamas militants responsible for the surprise weekend attack. Israel will want to punish Hamas like never before, but without killing so many Palestinian civilians that it loses international support. It will try to kill the kidnappers but spare the estimated 150 hostages that Hamas dragged across the border. And in the end it may decide to reluctantly leave Hamas in power in Gaza, rather than take its chances on arguably worse alternatives.