1.1 MILLION TOLD: FLEE BEFORE WE BLITZ GAZA

24 hours to escape attack 'battlefield'

- JERRY LAWTON

ISRAEL gave 1.1 million people 24 hours to flee their homes as it prepared to wreak brutal revenge for last week's terror attacks.

The military dropped leaflets from planes over northern Gaza where Hamas is understood to be holed up in tunnels.

Locals were warned to "evacuate immediately" and head south ahead of what military experts said would be a "shock and awe" blitz of ground and air attacks. The flyers said: "Terrorist organisations have started the war against the State of Israel". As a result, they added, "Gaza City has become a battlefield".