Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has ordered the military to act “immediately and forcefully” against kites and balloons launched from the Gaza Strip, saying they should be treated in the same way as drones even when they are not carrying explosives.

“The status of a balloon is the same as a kite, and the status of a kite is the same as a drone — whether it carries explosives or not,” Katz said, according to Israeli media.

The order followed reports of kites and balloons crossing from Gaza towards Israeli communities near the territory in recent days.

However, the Israeli military said at least four kites found near Nahal Oz contained no suspicious material and posed no danger to the public, according to the Israeli news site Zman Yisrael.

Katz's instructions do not distinguish between kites carrying dangerous material and those that do not.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Katz have warned that military operations would intensify if launches of kites, balloons and drones continued. Israeli authorities have also threatened to evacuate Palestinians from areas of Gaza where they say the objects are being launched.

The Jerusalem Post, citing Israeli military sources, reported that some of the kites had been launched by boys aged 12 and 13 under the direction of people believed to be linked to Hamas. The report provided no independent evidence to support that allegation.

Hamas denied responsibility for the launches.

Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said the kites cited by Israel were toys flown by Palestinian children in displacement camps and accused Israel of using the issue to justify attacks and threats against children.

Gazatte could not independently establish the circumstances surrounding all the kites Israel said had crossed from Gaza or identify who launched them.

The Israeli warnings coincided with fresh strikes on the territory. Two Israeli air strikes in Gaza on 23 August killed at least two people, including a four-year-old boy, and wounded seven others, Reuters reported, citing medics.

Israel said it would intensify strikes following what it described as launches of balloons, drones and kites from Gaza.

Katz's remarks do not, based on information published so far, amount to a general Israeli ban on flying kites inside the Gaza Strip. Instead, they set out a policy for a military response to kites Israel says are launched from Gaza towards its territory, including those that do not carry explosives.