While the IDF is struggling to effectively deal with the terror and destruction caused by incendiary balloons and kites being flown from Gaza into Israel, Israelis living by the border have decided to lend a helping hand and are now raising funds to purchase aerial drones to fight the phenomenon that has been embittering their lives for the past six months.
Although the IDF is employing a number of means to combat the incendiary balloons and kites, it is not enough for citizens who are suffering from the fires that break out as a result almost daily.
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More than NIS 50,000 has been collected in recent days for the purchase and further development of a new interceptor drone.
The drone, operated by a computer program, can detect a flaming balloon or kite aloft and intercept it.
The drone has a metal tip at its front and sharp wings, it is immune to collisions and can reach speeds of 300 km/h.
The Aerialax start-up company, owned by an Israeli Noam Kenig, has been developing the drone in Canada.
"The drone is easy to operate and relatively simple. Our goal is for every community to have such a device, so we can deal with the terror of balloons and kites," said Alon Alsheikh from Kibbutz Nir Am. "Our goal is to appoint a person in each community who will be trained to operate the drone."
Over the past six months 11,920 dunams (some 3,000 acres) of farmland and woodland have been burned in fires caused by incendiary kites and balloons flown from Gaza into Israel, according to the KKL.
Forests in the Gaza border area saw 1,053 fires that consumed countless of trees. The majority of the conflagrations erupted in the Be'eri forest, which suffered 452 fires, while 353 fires broke out in the Kissufim Forest.
The Shokeda Forest saw 75 fires, while 31 fires erupted in the Hannun Forest and 29 fires scorched the HaBesor Stream Forest.
The data was provided by KKL's foresters in the western Negev area, who have been constantly on call over the past six months, arriving at the scene the minute they receive a report about a fire breaking out.
"The nature in the Gaza border area has been severely damaged,” said one firefighter. “I believe that after the rain, the picture will become clearer and we will be able to know what is sprouting anew and what is not. But there is no doubt that this is a severe blow to nature. Places where people used to sit in the shade of the trees are now all scorched earth."