‎‎36 fires blaze through Israel's border towns as kite terrorism rages

Thousands of Palestinians rioted near the Israel-‎Gaza border on Friday, as part of the Hamas-‎orchestrated border demonstrations campaign launched on March 30. ‎

Demonstrators torched tires and hurled rocks and ‎firebombs at Israeli troops. In one instance, a ‎grenade was hurled at an IDF border post, but no ‎injuries or damage were reported in the incident.

Gaza's Health Ministry said 20 Palestinians were ‎wounded in the clashes. ‎

Over the weekend, dozens of rioters sent incendiary ‎kites and balloons flying across the security fence, sparking ‎‎36 fires in Israeli communities near the border. ‎

Hundreds of firefighters and volunteers battled the ‎flames for hours. ‎

Over 8,000 acres of forest and ‎‎‎agricultural ‎land on ‎‎the Israeli side of the border ‎‎‎have been destroyed ‎as a result of the Palestinian "kite campaign," ‎launched in late April, causing ‎‎‎tens of millions of ‎‎shekels in ‎damage.

The Nature and Parks Authority ‎‎said the damage to the area's flora and fauna would ‎take years to rehabilitate. ‎

Until Friday, the military had mostly been using drone technology ‎to combat kite terrorism, but last week the IDF introduced ‎a new electro-optic system meant to intercept them. ‎

The new technology was only partially successful, as flaming kites still got through.‎

An IDF drone fired warning shots at a terrorist kite ‎cell in Gaza on Saturday. No injuries were reported.‎