Students at the Hemdat Hadarom College, near the rocket-barraged town of Sderot, will release 669 balloons Thursday calling for the release of kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Shalit.

Each balloon will have the words "Free Gilad Shalit," written in English, Arabic and Hebrew. The event will also feature a letter written by Noam Shalit, father of the hostage, and is supported by the National Students Union.

The balloons will be released at 4 PM.