A kite suspected of having been launched from the Gaza Strip was found in Kibbutz Nahal Oz for the second time in two weeks, raising concern among residents of the Israeli border community that terrorist groups may be testing aerial routes for renewed attacks.
In both cases, no explosives or incendiary material were found on the kites, IDF and local officials said. But similar incidents in the past were followed by kites carrying flammable material, a tactic used from Gaza in previous years to ignite fires in Israeli fields and communities near the border.
Some residents and security officials believe the latest kites may be a probing operation by terrorist groups to see where they land before attaching incendiary material, as was done in the past, in an effort to cause maximum damage.
Nahal Oz, located near the Gaza border, was one of the Israeli communities attacked during Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, massacre. The kibbutz said 16 people from the community were murdered and eight were abducted to Gaza. Like many communities along the border, it has been largely evacuated since the attack and is now trying to bring residents home.
“Even after the harshest blow the kibbutz suffered on Oct. 7, with 16 murdered and eight abducted, we continue today to face a troubling security reality — precisely as the community is working to return home after over two years of displacement,” the kibbutz said.
The discovery of the kites, it added, was “a serious incident” that shows the security situation has not changed enough.
The kibbutz said the incidents come amid continuing reports that Hamas is rearming and reestablishing itself in Gaza, and after the expiration of an international ultimatum on April 8 for the group’s disarmament, without the public being given a clear picture of the consequences.
Nahal Oz said its residents are “determined to build the future of our children here,” but warned that “community resilience is not a blank check.”
“The gap between the government’s promises and the reality of kites in the yards of homes is creating deep concern,” the kibbutz said. “For us to complete the work of rehabilitation and ensure that returning families feel safe in their homes, and that those who have not yet returned feel safe to return, the state must ensure that what was will not be again.”
The kibbutz also warned against a return to naive past security assumptions, saying that for years the threat from Gaza had been treated as secondary to other threats.
“In practice, it was Hamas that exploited this gap and led to the gravest disaster we have known,” the kibbutz said. “Such a conception must not be allowed to take root again.”
Nahal Oz called on the government and the defense establishment to insist “without compromise” on the demilitarization of Gaza and the end of Hamas rule, to present a full and transparent security assessment and to respond firmly to every violation of Israeli sovereignty.
The IDF said that forces identified a kite on Thursday in the Nahal Oz area and that the incident was under review. “During scans by the forces, no suspicious finding was located on the kite,” the military said.