GAZA, June 29: Israel arrested dozens of Hamas cabinet ministers and lawmakers on Thursday in a move the ruling group said aimed to topple its government, as the army pressed on with a Gaza offensive to free an Israeli soldier captured by Palestinians.

In a night-time blitz in the West Bank, troops arrested Finance Minister Omar Abdel-Razeq and seven other cabinet members — a third of the Hamas cabinet — along with 23 legislators of the group, Palestinian officials said.

“(This) ... is a pre-planned plot to destroy the Authority, the government and the parliament and to bring the Palestinian people to their knees,” Hamas lawmaker Mushir al-Masri said.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other Group of Eight foreign ministers said in a joint statement that the arrests in the occupied West Bank raised “particular concerns”. They called on Israeli forces in Gaza to show restraint.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas asked the United Nations to intervene to secure the immediate release of the Hamas leaders arrested by Israel, Alvaro de Soto, the UN special envoy for the Middle East peace process, told Reuters.

Hundreds of Palestinian gunmen wielding automatic rifles and anti-tank weapons took up positions waiting for Israeli forces to open a second front in the northern Gaza Strip, a day after tanks and infantry pushed into the south of the territory.

“We will confront the occupation by all means, even if it costs us our necks,” senior Islamic Jihad leader Khaled al-Batsh told reporters in Gaza.

The Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), one of the militant groups believed to be responsible for the capture of Corporal Gilad Shalit, issued a statement taunting Israel, vowing not to provide information about whether the soldier was alive or dead.

Israeli Defence Minister Amir Peretz said Israel would step up pressure against militants in Gaza to secure the release of their PoW and stop rocket fire from the area.

“The army is ready for a severe and extensive operation in Gaza,” he said at a military ceremony. “If the soldier is returned and (rocket fire) is halted unconditionally, our troops will pull back.”

Israel said 64 Hamas officials were detained and it vowed to seize other members of the militant group. Israeli officials said those arrested would be prosecuted for involvement in “terror” acts.

Adding to the tensions, the body of an 18-year-old Jewish settler, Eliyahu Asheri, was found near Ramallah. The PRC took responsibility for the killing.

SECOND ASSAULT: Preparing for a northern Gaza offensive, Israeli aircraft dropped leaflets urging residents to avoid areas troops may target. Troops fired dozens of artillery shells in both south and northern Gaza, wounding two policemen.—AFP