'The IDF (Israeli Defence Forces) will escalate the operation in the Gaza Strip,' the leaflets said in Arabic. 'The IDF is not working against the people of Gaza but against Hamas and the terrorists only. Stay safe by following our orders.'
The leaflets urged Gaza residents not to help their Hamas rulers and to stay away from its members.
The same message was sent by text message to mobile phones in Gaza.
Israel's military commanders had appeared keen to pursue what was termed a third stage of the operation with additional ground troops being sent into the heart of Gaza's built-up areas to flush out more gunmen and to try to secure more gains.
The ominous threat, as well as unrelenting Palestinian rocket fire into southern Israel, came in defiance of international calls for a halt in a two-week-old offensive that has already killed more than 800 Palestinians and 13 Israelis.
A resolution passed by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) last Thursday called for an immediate and durable ceasefire that would lead to the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.
It was welcomed by countries across the world, including Singapore. A spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement yesterday: 'This is a very positive development. We urge all parties concerned to make every effort to implement the terms of the UNSC resolution expeditiously.'
However, Israel has dismissed the resolution as impractical, while Hamas, whose government in Gaza is not recognised internationally, is angry it was not consulted about the diplomatic efforts.
Hopes for peace are now increasingly focused on mediation efforts by neighbouring Egypt.
The plan seeks to meet Israel's requirement of preventing weapons going to Gaza through Egyptian tunnels and Hamas' demand for a reopening of Gaza's borders to normal traffic.
Several European Union countries and Turkey have offered to send troops to the border as part of an eventual monitoring mission, but Egypt and Hamas reject the idea of foreign forces on their territory.
An Israeli defence official said Egypt's plan foresaw forces loyal to moderate Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas, which were kicked out by Hamas in 2007, being redeployed on the Gaza side of the border alongside a bolstered Egyptian force.
Mr Abbas pressed his rival Hamas yesterday to accept the plan, as a Hamas delegation and European envoys arrived in Cairo to discuss the ceasefire proposal.
'The situation does not allow us to lose time,' Mr Abbas told journalists after meeting Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
AP, AFP