Israeli Strikes Kill Three in Gaza as Netanyahu, Katz Threaten to 'Intensify Strikes' Over Kite Launches

August 23, 2026 — Two separate Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip killed at least three Palestinians, including a four-year-old boy, and wounded several others, according to Palestinian health officials — the latest in a string of near-daily strikes since the nominal October 2025 ceasefire took hold. The same evening, Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz held an assessment with IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir and warned they would 'intensify strikes' and order new evacuations of parts of the Strip in response to kites, balloons and drones launched toward Israeli border communities — at least four kites landed near Kibbutz Nahal Oz over the weekend, though the army said nothing dangerous was found on them. Hamas dismissed the objects as 'children's toys' and accused Israel of using a fabricated pretext to justify continued strikes and undermine the ceasefire framework.