Scathing Gaza war report to be transferred to Security Council, where US veto is expected, after 114 states endorse it in Thursday's UN vote; only 18 states object to report's adoption, 44 states abstain
WASHINGTON – The United Nations General Assembly voted Thursday in favor of endorsing the Goldstone Report on the Gaza war in full – 114 states voted in favor of the report, while 18 objected and 44 abstained.
Discussions of the report, which accused both Israel and Hamas of committing war crimes in the course of Operation Cast Lead, got underway Wednesday, with 15 envoys delivering speeches ahead of the vote.
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During the past 24 hours, Arab states attempted to reach a compromise with European and other countries that were unwilling to endorse the proposal. Western states attempted to moderate the Arab proposal but failed to do so, as the Arab bloc decided to submit the proposal for a vote as is, while taking advantage of the automatic majority possessed by Muslim and non-aligned states at the UN.
The text voted on call "requests the Secretary-General to transmit the report of the 'United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict' to the Security Council, while granting Israel and the Palestinians three months in order to launch an internal inquiry into its charges.
America's UN Envoy Susan Rice shunned the session and the United States is expected to veto the report in the Security Council later on. Israel's UN Ambassador Gabriela Shalev also stayed away from the vote.
On Wednesday, Shalev criticized the Golsdstone Report during a special General assembly discussion, saying it was "conceived in hate and executed in sin."
Shalev added that cynical political maneuvers, not principals, are what led the report to be discussed at the general assembly.
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