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.

The Israeli Border Police have developed a defense system that will destroy drones and incendiary balloons and kites using a laser beam, Channel 12 reported.

In recent years, thousands of incendiary devices have been launched into southern Israel from Hamas-ruled Gaza, causing major damage to agricultural fields and nature reserves.

The new system, called Light Blade, is fully mobile, can be used at day or night, and is capable of intercepting targets up to two kilometers away.

Border Police commander Kobi Shabtai said, “The system provides an almost complete response to the threat from balloons and kites, and provides an effective and safe solution to the drone threat.”

The system is relatively inexpensive, costing $1 million per unit.