Palestinians say Israel is warning them to leave areas in southern Gaza

Residents say Israel has dropped leaflets over parts of southern Gaza, urging people to leave homes east of the town of Khan Younis. The leaflets also warned that Khan Younis was now a "dangerous battle zone."

The leaflets signaled that Israel was preparing to widen its offensive, which has so far focused largely on the northern part of the Gaza Strip.

Hundreds of thousands of people fled northern Gaza earlier in the war, with many taking shelter in Khan Younis and other cities in the south.