The US-led “Peace Council,” which oversees implementation of the Gaza peace plan, on Tuesday warned Hamas against launching kites after Israel threatened retaliatory strikes.
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“All armed activity in Gaza must stop, including the launching of kites. We have conveyed this message directly through the existing mechanism,” a Peace Council official said on condition of anonymity.
“Israel must also abide by the ceasefire. Military operations cannot go beyond responding to real and imminent threats,” the official added.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Hamas on Sunday that Israel would intensify its operations in Gaza if kites, drones or balloons were launched.
The warning came after a group of kites was reportedly found across the Gaza border in southern Israel, areas that were severely affected by the attacks carried out by Hamas on October 7, 2023.
Israeli media reported that four kites were found Saturday in residential communities in the Gaza border area, while the military said it intercepted another kite on Sunday, bringing the number found in recent days to around 10.
The incidents revived memories of previous launches of incendiary kites and balloons from Gaza, which sparked fires in agricultural areas in southern Israel.
According to reports, the Israeli military believes Hamas was behind the launches, which were not carrying explosives, and suspects the group may have been testing Israel’s response.
Hamas political bureau member Bassem Naim said in a statement that the kites “were launched by children in Gaza searching for their innocent childhood amid the rubble.”
The United Nations earlier Tuesday condemned Israel’s threat to expel residents from parts of Gaza where kites, drones and balloons are launched, expressing concern over what it described as “unacceptable rhetoric” from Israeli leaders.
Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the UN Human Rights Office, told reporters in Geneva: “Regarding the threat of expulsion because children are flying kites, I hope we can all agree that this is outrageous.”
US President Donald Trump established the “Peace Council” to oversee the ceasefire declared in Gaza in October.
Israel has expanded its ground incursion into Gaza and continued to carry out airstrikes that have killed 1,288 Palestinians, according to figures from Hamas-run health authorities, which the United Nations considers credible.
On Tuesday, Gaza’s civil defense agency reported that three people were killed in Israeli strikes, bringing the death toll in recent days to eight, including two children.
Source: AFP
