Unity Party chairman Gilad Erdan and the party’s Knesset candidate, Col. (res.) Hezi Nechama, toured the Gaza border area on Monday following the renewed launching of explosive kites from Gaza toward communities in the region.
The two called for a tougher Israeli response to any hostile action by Hamas, arguing that Israel should abandon its policy of warnings and adopt a policy of immediate military retaliation.
The tour was organized by the Otef Israel Forum and guided by the Derech HaTkuma organization, both of which advocate changes to Israel’s security doctrine following the events of October 7. During the visit, the participants toured observation points near Kissufim Forest and along the Netzarim-Be’eri Forest route, where they received briefings on the security situation in the area.
Erdan sharply criticized the government’s response to the renewed launching of explosive kites. “There is no such thing as just an explosive kite or just a balloon - it is all terrorism directed straight at the courageous residents who have returned to live here," he said. “Instead of responding immediately and forcefully, we are once again hearing warnings to Hamas. What does it mean to warn Hamas after everything we have experienced? The explosive kites have started again - they need to pay a heavy price, and we must make clear to the international community that this will be the response to any attempt to return to a policy of terrorism."
He said residents of the Gaza border communities are entitled to full protection from the state and that any attempt to harm them must be met with an uncompromising response.
During the tour, Nechama discussed a plan he previously developed as part of the Forum of Reservist Commanders and Soldiers, together with Maj. Gen. (res.) Giora Eiland. According to Nechama, the plan was presented to Israel’s political leadership and the IDF more than two years ago but was never implemented.
“We are more than two years after presenting a plan to defeat Hamas, and in practice Hamas still controls large parts of the Strip and continues to carry out terrorist attacks," he said. “When we see the explosive kites returning, we understand that this is a return to the same failed concept. The time has come to fully defeat Hamas."
Nechama added that if his party becomes part of the country’s leadership, it will work to implement a plan that, he said, includes dividing the Gaza Strip, imposing a siege on Hamas and continuing the fighting until Hamas is completely defeated.
The two stressed that, in their view, the return of explosive kites is not an isolated incident but a warning sign requiring a fundamental change in Israel’s security policy toward the Gaza Strip, with the aim of preventing the return of the patterns of terrorism that characterized the years preceding the war.
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