Firefighting teams have been battling blazes since the morning hours in southern Israel.
At least five fires were ignited near towns in the Gaza Belt region by incendiary balloons flown across the border from Gaza by Hamas terrorists.
? Over 8K acres of Israeli land burnt.
? 1000s of animals killed.
?Because of arson & explosive kites & balloons that terrorists in fly over the border.
A terrorist squad was just launching MORE arson balloons into . In response, an IDF aircraft fired at them. pic.twitter.com/0010uhohfl— Israel Defense Forces (@IDFSpokesperson)
All of the fires were brought under control by Monday night, according to the Southern Division of the Israel Fire and Rescue Service.
In addition, a balloon attached to an improvised explosive device (IED) was discovered near Ashkelon. The Israel Police bomb squad was summoned to neutralize the explosive.
No physical injuries were reported.