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Egypt gives Hamas ultimatum to stop flying kites into Israel

July 18, 2018 at 6:47 am

Palestinian protesters prepare to fly kites during the Great March of Return on 25 May 2018 [Mohammad Asad / Middle East Monitor]

Egyptian Authorities have given Hamas an ultimatum to stop Gazans flying kites and balloons into Israel, Israeli news website Ynet News reported, Tuesday.

“Egypt has warned Hamas to curtail the launching of incendiary balloons and kites into Israeli territory within a few days,” the Israeli news website reported.

It went on: “Hamas has told Egyptian intelligence officials… that its men working to reduce the number of incendiary balloons.”

Yet, sources said “Hamas reiterated a message it had conveyed to Cairo this week, that it is unable to end the phenomenon.”

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Ynet News said: “such claims are difficult to prove in the current volatile climate. Several fires caused by the flaming kites and balloons broke out throughout Monday.”

Early this week, the Israeli cabinet decided to shoot kite flyers. Naftali Bennet, Israel’s Education Minister, insisted that kite flyers must be targeted even if they were children.

On 30 March, Gazans began an open-ended protest along the eastern fence of the Gaza Strip. Protests called for the end of the 12-year-old Israeli siege and sought to highlight Palestinian refugee’s right to return to territory occupied in 1948.

According to Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza, Israeli occupation forces have killed 141 protesters and wounded 16,000 others.