Palestinians fly balloons loaded with flammable material to be thrown at the Israeli side, near the Israel-Gaza border in the central Gaza Strip. Photo: Reuters / Ibraheem Abu Mustafa.

Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, on Thursday urged a top UN official known for her strong advocacy on environmental protection to condemn Hamas for its ongoing arson attacks against Israeli agricultural communities.

“For over one hundred days, Hamas terrorists…have used arson kites and other aerial delivery means to set almost 700 fires that have torched thousands of acres, including over 1,500 acres of agricultural fields in Israel,” Danon wrote in a letter to the deputy secretary-general of the UN, Amina Mohammed. “This is a new face of terrorism directly targets the Israeli ecosystem and has caused over $2 million in damages.”

Mohammad previously served as Nigeria’s minister of environment, where she worked on issues related to sustainable development.

“As a country that proudly spearheads the advancement of agricultural technology at the United Nations and around the world through our bi-annual resolution on Agricultural Technology for Sustainable Development, it is infuriating to see the terrorists of Hamas do the opposite,” Danon wrote.

“Hamas is attacking Israel’s southern source of livelihood and their acts of eco-terrorism have not only devastated land that provides food and livelihood to our civilians, but they have also caused irreparable damage to nature preserves and dozens of species of wildlife,” he continued.

“In the interest of protecting the lives of civilians, their livelihood and the productivity of our ecosystem, I request that you strongly condemn Hamas and hold the terrorist organization accountable for these latest attacks,” Danon concluded.