Balloons carrying suspected incendiary device land in Jerusalem

Balloons carrying a suspected incendiary device were found in the Ramat Eshkol northern neighborhood of Jerusalem on Thursday, the Israel Police said.

Police bomb disposal experts arrived at the scene and neutralized the suspicious package the balloons were carrying, police said in a statement.

The bright pink balloons attached to the suspicious package were decorated with Arabic writing that said “My heart.”

There were no reports of injuries or damage.

Police did not say where the balloons were launched from.

The tactic of sending airborne incendiary devices into Israeli territory has been used almost daily by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip since the start of weekly border protests there in March.

On Thursday firefighters worked to extinguish three blazes near southern Israeli towns caused by incendiary balloons launched from Gaza, a spokesman for the Israeli Fire and Rescue Services said.

Gaza protesters have launched hundreds of such incendiary kites and balloons into Israel, sparking fires that have destroyed forests, burned crops, and killed livestock. Over 7,000 acres of land have been burned, causing millions of shekels in damages, according to Israeli officials. Some balloons have carried improvised explosive devices.

There have been a number of incidents in which West Bank Palestinians appeared to have copied the tactic, sending devices into Israeli communities and settlements.

On three occasions over the past month suspicious balloons have been discovered in Jerusalem, as well as in the courtyard of a home in the West Bank settlement of Givat Ze’ev, just north of Jerusalem, in the central city of Lod, and in the Tel Aviv suburb of Bat Yam.

Police called on the public to call the emergency 100 phone line if any similar suspicious objects are found.