Gaza-Based terrorist group Hamas is stepping up its campaign of ecological terrorism against Israel, launching explosives-laden balloons across the border. At least 45 fires were sparked by the incendiary balloons set off from Hamas-controlled territory, Israeli media reported on Wednesday.
Hamas-linked terrorist unit, Sons of Al-Zawari, which specializes in aerial incendiary attacks, took credit for the cross-border arson campaign entering its seventh consecutive day. The terrorist unit, named after a slain Tunisian jihadi, called it a “beginning a new battle” against Israel, the Jerusalem Post reported.
Israeli military and border police have been deployed to intercept these airborne incendiary objects which have devastated forests, agriculture fields and communities living in southern Israel. Fires broke out at 20 different places in Be’eri nature reserve, an Israeli TV network reported on Monday night.
Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth on Wednesday reported the ongoing eco-terror campaign:
Over 20 fires broke out on Wednesday in Israeli communities bordering the Gaza Strip, due to incendiary balloons sent into Israel from the Hamas-controlled enclave for the seventh day in a row. (…)In the last 72 hours, there have been 45 fires in the KKL-JNF forests in the south, scorching about 850 dunams of land. In Kibbutz Or HaNer near Sderot, about 2,000 dunams [over 490 acres] caught fire. And in municipality of Netiv HaAsara, approximately 350 dunams [over 90 acres] were burned.Since last week, fires have consumed close to 2,000 acres of forest trees and agricultural fields. No casualties were reported.(…)According to the Israel Fire and Rescue Services, the fires were extinguished with cooperation from the Nature and Parks Authority, the KKL-Jewish National Fund and the IDF forces.In addition, the defense system meant to intercept small objects such as balloons was deployed for operational use for the first time, after reaching 90% success rate during trials.
Mayors of Israeli communities bordering Hamas-held Gaza have urged the government to act against mounting terror and arson attacks. On Sunday, Hamas snipers shot at Israeli engineers working on the border fence, the Times of Israel reported.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) responded by taking out a Hamas observation post near the border. “The strike was carried out in response to the launching of incendiary balloons from Gazan territory into Israel over the course of the day,” the IDF said.
Apart from firing thousands of rockets, Hamas uses arson to terrorize civilians in southern Israel. The terrorist group launched 1,500 rockets against Israel last year alone. The Islamic terrorist group has invested millions in digging tunnels for staging cross-border terror attacks and kidnapping Israelis. Iran’s Shia Islamic regime is one of the biggest source of direct funding for the Hamas. Tehran hands out around $30 million each month to the Sunni terrorist group.
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