UN calls Israel's Gaza kite expulsion threat 'outrageous'

The United Nations on Tuesday called Israel's threat to expel people from parts of Gaza where kites, drones and balloons are launched toward Israel "outrageous".

Ravina Shamdasani, spokeswoman for the UN rights office, told reporters in Geneva that the threat over what she described as children's kite flying reflected "unacceptable rhetoric" from Israeli leaders.

Israel warned Hamas on Sunday that it would intensify targeted operations in Gaza if launches of kites, drones and balloons toward Israel continued. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a joint statement that Israel would also evacuate people from areas used for the launches.

Hamas has denied responsibility. Bassem Naim, a member of Hamas's political bureau, said the kites were launched by children in Gaza, while Hamas separately accused Israel of using the kites as a pretext for airstrikes in central Gaza on Sunday.

Gaza's civil defence rescue service said three people were killed in those strikes.

Israeli media reported that four kites were found in communities near the Gaza border on Saturday and that the army shot down one on Sunday, bringing the number recovered in recent days to about 10. The reports said the devices did not carry explosives and said the Israeli military believed Hamas was behind the launches.

The incidents have recalled earlier waves of incendiary kites and balloons launched from Gaza in previous years, which set fires in agricultural areas in southern Israel.