Israeli troops on ground in Gaza as residents in north warned to evacuate

Israel briefly deployed ground troops inside the Gaza Strip for the first time early yesterday and its military warned northern Gaza residents to evacuate their homes.

Neither Israel nor Palestinian militants show signs of agreeing to a ceasefire in a widening offensive that has killed more than 160 Palestinians, despite calls by the United Nations Security Council and others to end the increasingly bloody six-day offensive.

With Israel massing tanks and soldiers at Gaza's borders, some feared a wider ground offensive that would cause heavy casualties.

"We don't know when the operation will end," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a cabinet meeting. "It might take a long time."

Early yesterday, Israeli troops launched a brief raid into northern Gaza to destroy what the military described as a rocket-launching site, an operation the military said left four soldiers slightly wounded.

The Israeli air force later dropped leaflets warning residents to evacuate their homes ahead of what Israel's military spokesman described as a "short and temporary" campaign against northern Gaza to begin after midnight. The area is home to at least 100,000 people.