FBI Raids Indymedia

From a report in today's MediaGuardian (free reg.):

The FBI has seized the British-based internet servers hosting the independent news network Indymedia, prompting accusations of intimidation.

Officers from the US-based federal law enforcement agency took servers belonging to Rackspace, a US-owned web-hosting service with premises in Uxbridge, Middlesex.

[ ... ]

The operation resulted in the temporary closure of about 20 Indymedia websites, covering 17 countries.

It appears that this action effectively shuts down the entire Indymedia operation out of Britain. Many people are enraged, claiming infringement on freedom of information and government cybersnooping. And, no information has been provided as to why or where the equipment was taken.

From a practical standpoint, there is good reason to keep Indymedia in operation. It's a method to monitor what the communist, anarchist, socialist, and other radical groups are doing. I'm sure law enforcement agencies see things the same way so it's odd that they would shut the operation down.