Israel cuts Gaza fishing zone at Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre after new fire balloons

Israel has cut the fishing zone it allows off Gaza, an official said yesterday, in the third such response in a fortnight to Palestinian incendiary balloons.

The Israeli official said on condition of anonymity that as of Wednesday the fishing limit for Gaza fishermen had been reduced from a maximum of 15 nautical miles to 10. A spokesman for the Israeli fire service said incendiary balloons from Gaza caused three blazes on Tuesday.

It was only on Tuesday that Israel restored the limit to 15 miles after a previous reduction in response to fire balloons last week. It imposed a similar cut on May 23. In the past year, Palestinians have succeeded in setting fire to large areas of farmland in southern Israel.