Mike Whitney – The Unz Review Aug 26, 2026

The kite issue has been outrageous. Israeli state television had an item on terrorism kites. The state cabinet met to discuss the threat of kites. They are literally building consensus to kill playing children. All so that no child in Gaza can play or enjoy themselves. In Gaza, just trying to live is a crime for a child. Shaiel Ben Ephraim

“We demand that the IDF act against every kite that crosses into Israeli territory, locate it, and deal with it in a timely manner.” Uri Epstein, head of the Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council, Jerusalem Post

They want to take away the one thing we love. I swear, my heart is breaking. Unnamed Palestinian child

Just when you think Israel has no lower to go, they find some new depth of sadistic cruelty. What is wrong with these people? Are they really so mean-spirited that they want to take away what few toys the Palestinian kids still have? This from Aljazzera:

A four-year-old child was among three Palestinians killed in Israeli air attacks in central Gaza on Sunday, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened to escalate attacks over the alleged launching of paper kites from the war-torn enclave.

On Sunday, Israel fired missiles at a warehouse in az-Zawayda, reducing it to rubble, and then carried out strikes near Salah al-Din Street, killing four-year-old Muhammad Abdel Salam Taha….. The deadly bombardment comes as Palestinian and Israeli affairs experts warn that the government is fabricating a security crisis around children’s toys to derail ceasefire agreements, enforce demographic changes and ensure Netanyahu’s political survival.

After the attack, Netanyahu and his Defence Minister Israel Katz issued a joint statement on Sunday threatening severe retaliation over the toys. They also threatened the forced displacement of Palestinians from areas “used as launch sites for kites, drones and balloons”….

The attacks came despite the Israeli military acknowledging that the recovered kites contained no explosives and were simply flown by children. While the joint statement cited “kites, drones, and balloons”, military inspections confirmed finding only 10 paper kites – all completely free of explosives and flown by children in displacement camps. Aljazeera

“Launching paper kites”? Are you kidding me??

What does Bibi think he’s dealing with, a Tomahawk missile? A nuclear warhead?

This would be laughable if the overreaction wasn’t so lethal. But a four-year-child was blown to bits in this farce and Israel is promising more. They’re promising to vaporize anyone who defies their insane directives. And they’re deadly serious. Check out this nutso headline at the Times of Israel:

IDF told to act forcefully against Gaza kites; 3 reported killed in Israeli strikes

4-year-old among Gaza dead; Netanyahu tells IDF to do ‘everything’ to counter Gaza drone threat; Katz: Kites to be treated like drones even if they have no explosives; IDF: Strikes targeted Hamas commander, arms site

(From the article– Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz both said Sunday that they had instructed the IDF to take significant action after the launching of kites from the Gaza Strip over the weekend. Subsequent Israeli strikes in Gaza on Sunday were reported to kill three people, including a young boy….

At least four kites were flown from Gaza to Kibbutz Nahal Oz over the weekend. T he army said nothing suspicious was found on the kites and there was no danger to the public, but many have associated the objects with the Gazan kites and balloons carrying incendiary devices that plagued southern Israel in previous years.

The military stressed that “no suspicious findings were identified on the kites,” and that “at no stage was there any danger to the public.” But according to Hebrew media reports, the IDF believes that Hamas was responsible for launching the kites, and was doing so to test whether and how Israel would respond.

“My directive to the defense establishment and the IDF is to do everything against this lethal weapon — to strike it, to strike those operating it, to strike the place from which it was launched, to do everything in order to protect our citizens in the Gaza border communities and everywhere else,” Netanyahu said.

….Hours later, a joint statement from Netanyahu and Katz threatened to “intensify strikes” against those responsible for launching kites from Gaza toward Israeli border communities, and evacuate areas of the Strip….

“Israel warns Hamas that if the launches toward Israel do not stop immediately, the IDF will act to intensify strikes against those responsible for the launches and evacuate populations from areas from which kites, drones and balloons are launched,” Netanyahu and Katz said in a joint statement.

Earlier Sunday, Katz said he had instructed the IDF to “act forcefully” against the launching of kites from the Gaza Strip.

“I instructed the IDF to act immediately and forcefully against any phenomenon of launches from Gaza toward the communities of the western Negev,” Katz said in a statement….

“A balloon is treated like a kite, and a kite is treated like a drone — with or without explosives,” he said. “Anyone who organizes, launches, or enables the launches will be dealt with immediately and with the utmost severity.” Times of Israel

Kids. These are kids playing with the only toys they have left (since Israel blew up everything else.) Are they going to take those away too? Have we lost all sense of proportion or reason or decency?

By the way, Netanyahu’s office delivered a statement on Sunday giving Hamas a three-day deadline to halt the kite launches or there would be more air strikes to come. So, the next round of attacks could be just hours away. Check out this excellent summary by the always insightful David Says Stuff:

This is a Palestinian boy destroying the kites he made with his own hands because he’s terrified that Israel will bomb him for flying them. His father was already murdered by Israel for just trying to fee his family. This is the version of Israel that AIPAC spends millions to hide from you… a military that terrorizes a child into destroying his own kites. Because once you see stories like this, the propaganda just stops working. And, of course Israel threatened “powerful actions” over kites and balloons. How else do you make Palestinian children never feel safe even while playing? So, Israel Katz said, “They’ll be treated like drones with or without explosives.” So they know these are harmless, but they just don’t care. So, sure, let’s keep calling them “the world’s most moral army”. And, as a father, I feel this boy’s pain like it’s my own. They killed his father and now they are taking away one of the only things that brought him joy. Israel is not satisfied just taking Palestinian lives. They have to take away their childhood as well.” DavidSaysStuff

What a powerfull, heartfelt statement. If only Netanyahu had an ounce of David’s empathy, the genocide would have ended long ago.

 

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