Gaza: Israel strikes back over Hamas 'balloon terror' and rocket offensive

“I want to say to all of Iran’s forces, including in Gaza, there will be a very heavy price for the balloon terror,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today, as Israel attacked what it says were Hamas military sites in Gaza with helicopters and tanks.

Meanwhile, both Israeli and Hamas leaders have reached out to Qatar to renew humanitarian aid to Gaza  — and perhaps to help de-escalate tensions.  

Balloon terror:  Hamas launched a series of incendiary attacks from Gaza into southern Israel, starting fires in the Ashkelon area near the Gaza border. Hamas started using incendiary explosives tied to balloons and kites in 2018, but a shaky truce was reached in the fall of that year. In this latest round, Hamas blames Israel for stifling economic and development projects and border agreements. In a further show of force, Hamas test fired eight medium-range missiles into the sea of the Gaza Strip on Aug. 10.

An unwelcome southern front:  Hamas’ actions, and Israel’s reaction, occur as Israeli leaders and the Israeli Defense Forces have been focused on Lebanon. Israel deployed tanks to its border with Lebanon on Monday. The line from Jerusalem is that Hezbollah is taking advantage of the current instability following the explosion in Beirut last week, with Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi going as far to say on Aug.11 that “political instability within Lebanon has allowed Hezbollah to essentially take over the entire country politically, militarily and economically, all at Iran’s command.”