Three killed in strikes on Gaza as Israel renews threats over kite-flying

At least three Palestinians have been killed in separate Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, medics and local media reported.

This comes as Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz on Thursday renewed his threat to expel Palestinians from any area in Gaza where kites were being flown.

One Palestinian was killed and others injured in an Israeli attack on a tent housing displaced people west of Gaza City on Thursday, a source at Al-Shifa Hospital said.

An Israeli drone strike also hit a tent sheltering displaced people in the al-Mawasi area in western Khan Younis, killing one person and injuring others, the Palestinian Wafa news agency reported.

Separately, an Israeli drone targeted an electric bicycle near the al-Sinaa intersection west of Gaza City, killing one person and injuring several others, including one critically, it added.

The ongoing Israeli attacks come despite a US-brokered “ceasefire” that came into effect in October 2025.

Although major fighting halted in the strip after the agreement, deadly Israeli strikes have continued.

The Israeli military said the latest air strikes in Khan Younis were targeting Hamas fighters. In a post on X, it claimed that a Hamas commander who took part in holding three Israeli hostages was killed in the strikes.

Palestinian authorities accuse Israel of undermining efforts to implement a broader plan by US President Donald Trump to end the genocidal war on Gaza, which includes the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from the strip and disarming Hamas.

Renewed Israeli threats over kite flying

As strikes continue, Katz renewed his threat to expel Palestinians from areas where kites or balloons were being flown in Gaza.

Katz made the threat during a high-level security meeting with Israeli military chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir and other top military officials including the head of Israel’s air defence, according to a statement released by his office.

“Based on the instructions of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and my instructions, the Israeli army will use all necessary tools, including evacuating Gaza residents from any area or neighborhood from which [kite and balloon] launches are carried out,” Katz said.

Earlier, Katz said in a post on X, “A balloon and kite shall be treated the same as a drone – with or without explosives”, prompting Palestinian parents to prevent their children from flying kites.

Zamir on Tuesday said plans to demilitarise Gaza and disarm Hamas “using all necessary means” would continue despite recent efforts by the US to advance the ceasefire.

Israeli attacks in Gaza have killed more than 1,300 Palestinians and injured more than 4,000 since the ceasefire came into effect, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

The Israeli army has reported five deaths in its ranks over the same period, as well as one civilian contractor.

More than 73,400 Palestinians have been killed and over 174,400 injured in Israeli attacks since the genocidal war began in October 2023.