Gaza rioters flying firebombs attached to kites into Israeli territory sparked three fires in Israel.
Firefighters succeeded in gaining control of two of the fires - in the Kissufim Forest and in Be'eri - at approximately 3:00p.m. The third fire, however, is still blazing.
Ten firefighting teams are working to gain control of the blazes. No injuries have been reported, but there is significant damage.
The kites are intended to "to burn the farm
land," "destabilize, creating confusion," and cause "burned crops."
Earlier this week, the Israeli government offered farmers financial incentives to harvest their grains early, in order to reduce the risk of kite terror damaging the crops. However, early harvesting means the grains will have to undergo additional procedures to wick the moisture out.
Meanwhile, the IDF is experimenting with using drones to stop some of the firebomb-carrying kites before they reach the Israeli border.
MK Moti Yogev (Jewish Home), who serves as a member of Israel's Diplomatic-Security Cabinet, called on the government to respond to the kite terror by eliminating Hamas leaders.
"To respond to this kite terror, we need to hit the head. We need to hit the heads of Hamas, with targeted eliminations," he said. "They said there's someone responsible in Gaza? So he can pay the price."
"In addition to the suffering and the enormous agricultural damage, these fires also endanger lives. In order to prevent them, we need to attack and deter, just like we would respond to shootings or any other terror attack. We are responsible for the security of the citizens living in Israeli towns near Gaza, and in every other area."
