Targeting IDF soldiers at Gaza border
Targeting IDF soldiers at Gaza borderFlash 90

Gazans protesting along the Gaza border have begun attaching firebombs to kites to fly over the fence into Israel in a new tactic as the riots enter their fourth week.

For protests set for Friday, Gazans were hoping to send dozens of kites over the fence, including some carrying notes telling Israelis "there is no place for you in Palestine."

On the eve of Friday's protests, a group of terrorists worked to create the flying firebombs under a tree in an olive orchard hundreds of meters from the Israeli border east of Gaza City.

As AFP watched, three young men carried one kite dozens of meters towards the border before stopping to set the bottle alight.

With the flame lit, they sent it into the air and cut the thread -- watching as it floated over the border and crashed, causing a small fire.

"We use the kites to send a message," one proud teen terrorist said.

Another teen terrorist said, "We are flying kites to burn the farmland." An older terrorist said he hoped the kites would "destabilize, creating confusion," and expressed hope that they would result in "burned crops."

Since March 30, tens of thousands have rioted along the border, aiming to breach the border, tamper with the border fence and security infrastructure, and injure or kill IDF soldiers. Some of the rioters approached the fence, throwing stones and firebombs and rolling burning tires toward IDF soldiers stationed nearby.

Other rioters used explosives to injure soldiers and damage military equipment.

On Thursday, a fire broke out on an Israeli farm after a firebomb attached to a kite fell on the property.

Hamas uses the civilians in attendance to attempt to harm IDF soldiers, without regard to the civilians' lives. In one case, Hamas forced a seven-year-old girl to "attack" IDF soldiers. The soldiers brought the girl safely back to her parents.