Subscribe to Print Edition | Thu., January 10, 2008 Shvat 3, 5768 | | Israel Time: 22:17 (EST+7) web haaretz.com   Back to Homepage Rosner's Domain Diplomacy Defense Jewish World Opinion National Print Edition Advertising Books Arts & Leisure Business Real Estate Easy Start Travel Week's End Anglo File

Members of the UN Security Council discussing conditions in the Middle East during a meeting on Thursday. (AP) Last update - 09:11 12/11/2006 Hamas: U.S. veto of UN draft resolution backs further 'massacres' By Shlomo Shamir, Haaretz Correspondent, Haaretz Service and Agencies The Hamas-led Palestinian government said on Saturday that the United States' veto of a UN Security Council resolution condemning the Israel Defense Forces shelling in Beit Hanun that killed 20 Palestinians on Wednesday showed the U.S. backed Israel's action. Ghazi Hamad, the Palestinian cabinet spokesman, said the veto was "a signal that the U.S. had given legitimacy to the massacres and a green light to (Israel) to ... carry out more massacres." The Arab League likewise strongly criticized the U.S. for vetoing the resolution. Advertisement Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa voiced his "surprise and disappointment" at the United States for vetoing the draft resolution. "This veto will only increase the anger," Moussa said in a statement issued by his office in Cairo. "It is inexplicable that a veto can be used to protect Israeli actions against civilians," he said. 10 of the council's 15 members voted for the measure, while Britain, Denmark, Japan and Slovakia abstained. U.S. Ambassador to the UN John Bolton said the draft resolution, which also called for a quick withdrawal of IDF troops from the Gaza Strip, was "biased against Israel and politically motivated." "This resolution does not display an evenhanded characterization of the recent events in Gaza, nor does it advance the cause of Israeli-Palestinian peace to which we aspire and for which we are working assiduously," he told the Security Council. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the draft resolution would have aggravated the situation in Gaza because it contained "inflammatory and unnecessary language." "We do not believe the resolution was designed to contribute to the cause of peace," she said in a statement. In Jerusalem, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev said the draft resolution was one-sided. "It's good that it wasn't accepted by the Security Council," he said. The resolution, proposed by Qatar, originally called for an "immediate investigation into the massacre that took place in Beit Hanun" and for Israel to "cease all violence against the civilian population in the occupied territories, including East Jerusalem." The draft also demanded the deployment of UN observers in the area to oversee the implementation of the cease-fire outlined in the draft. The Qatari delegation re-worded the proposal following objections raised to the first draft. In the new version, the statement no longer called the shelling a "massacre," nor demanded the deployment of UN observers. In place of observers, the new resolution called for an "international mechanism" to be deployed in Gaza to protect the civilian population. Instead of demanding the formation of a panel of inquiry, the new proposal called for the formation of a fact-finding team. The new resolution also included a demand that Israel withdraw its soldiers from the Gaza Strip, and a condemnation of Qassam rockets fired into Israel. Still, it did not demand the release of soldier Gilad Shalit, kidnapped in June, Army Radio reported. The resolution also urged the international community to work to end the political stalemate between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. In spite of the resolution's altered wording, Israel maintained that the resolution was one-sided and excessive. The resolution would have called on UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to send a panel of inquiry to Gaza to examine the circumstances of the shelling Bookmark to del.icio.us   'Bush go home' Israeli Arab parties join leftist protests against the Bush visit. Peace overture Syria says it isn't seeking a military solution with Israel.   1.   I am afraid after the next 9/11 there will be dancing again..... 10:31  |  Swiss 11/11/06   2.   One again History Rewritten 11:07  |  Guy From NYC 11/11/06   3.   UN security council votes on softened resolution 11:09  |  mick roberts 11/11/06   4.   Funk The UN 11:47  |  O`Reilly 11/11/06   5.   Dance on THIS ! 11:47  |  Akiva Patysh 11/11/06   6.   Dancing again? 11:55  |  Neutral Observer 11/11/06   7.   Even the softened version will be vetoed by the USA 12:01  |  Clickfool 11/11/06   8.   The UN. 12:16  |  David Nigel Braham 11/11/06   9.   no 1, swiss.... 12:18  |  ravi 11/11/06   10.   Swiss threatens another 9/11 wil he be dancing? 12:24  |  David 11/11/06   11.   Dont`t condemn Israel, put its leaders on trial 12:54  |  Jacob 11/11/06   12.   UN 13:00  |  Frank 11/11/06   13.   # 10 David If I would be Palestinian.... 13:42  |  Swiss 11/11/06   14.   Let them vote for whatever they want 14:23  |  Jonathan S 11/11/06   15.   UN 14:44  |  David 11/11/06   16.   UN Resolutions Not for Israel 14:49  |  Walid 11/11/06   17.   # 11 Jacob 14:52  |  Moe 11/11/06   18.   as usual the UN will come out with nothing 14:55  |  Tamir Gaza 11/11/06   19.   Censor the Swiss roll 15:06  |  y a w n 11/11/06   20.   TO ALL THE PALESTINIANS 15:10  |  Moe 11/11/06   21.   #1, I had a feeling you are an idiot, now you convinced me 15:18  |  Mufasa 11/11/06   22.   #1, I had a feeling you are an idiot, now you convinced me 15:18  |  Mufasa 11/11/06   23.   # 9 Ravi 15:22  |  Ian Williams 11/11/06   24.   You too #6 15:22  |  Mufasa 11/11/06   25.   clickfool 15:23  |  Tom C 11/11/06   26.   #6, why don`t you move to Sderot? 15:26  |  Mufasa 11/11/06   27.   ISLAMIC PRESENCE IN THE HOLY LAND IS A CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY 15:31  |  Liberation 11/11/06   28.   UN Crap 15:39  |  Brod 11/11/06   29.   We already understand why - they are death worshippers 15:45  |  Joe Frazier 11/11/06   30.   Can we have a UN resolution condemning the UN? 16:06  |  Dan N 11/11/06   31.   TIME TO DEMOCRATIZE THE UN = SCRAP THE RIGHT TO (AB)USE A VETO 16:13  |  Messaoud 11/11/06   32.   Large UN mission is needed 16:20  |  Dr D 11/11/06   33.   One week 16:20  |  MR 11/11/06   34.   Where is the Condemnation of muqutada al sadr 16:23  |  rick geiger 11/11/06   35.   1 Swiss: after the next 9/11 there will be dancing again..... 16:26  |  KUTW 11/11/06   36.   The Hypocricy of the UN and the World 16:28  |  Yentl 11/11/06   37.   UN resolutions 16:31  |  KUTW 11/11/06   38.   To the immagenary or real Clickfool. 16:32  |  David Nigel Braham 11/11/06   39.   U.N = Antisemetics 16:43  |  Ariya Gothelf 11/11/06   40.   #12 16:53  |  ballistic 11/11/06   41.   #21 response 17:10  |  ballistic 11/11/06   42.   dancing again? 17:13  |  joanne 11/11/06   43.   The Human Rights Dance 17:19  |  Fed Up 11/11/06   44.   7: As it should be, Fool 17:22  |  David Teich 11/11/06   45.   To Swiss and Ravi 17:32  |  California Bear 11/11/06   46.   UN 17:39  |  Brod 11/11/06   47.   Hey clickfoot, the same guys that blew the London subway are .... 17:39  |  Jorge 11/11/06   48.   kutw...no 19 17:49  |  ravi 11/11/06   49.   # 27 California Beer Maybe you read ..... 18:09  |  Swiss 11/11/06   50.   Proposed Rewording 18:15  |  natan 11/11/06   51.   more of the same Arab hypocrecy 18:24  |  John 11/11/06   52.   # 19 KUTW 18:26  |  Swiss 11/11/06   53.   Jorge in Tegucigalpa`s terrible analogy! 18:35  |  Wiktor 11/11/06   54.   Quatar Should Focus On Its Expanded Harem and Share it With Pals 18:45  |  Joseph E . 11/11/06   55.   #11, move to Sderot for a month and 18:47  |  Mufasa 11/11/06   56.   # 27 California Bear Maybe you have another look... 18:56  |  Swiss 11/11/06   57.   Beit Hanun Security Council Resolutions 19:32  |  Helena 11/11/06   58.   For Jorge # 29 19:53  |  Clickfool 11/11/06   59.   Neural Observer #6 is right 19:53  |  Nathan 11/11/06   60.   For David Nigel Barham # 22 20:00  |  Clickfool 11/11/06   61.   U.N. RESOLUTIONS? 20:20  |  NEIL GOLAN 11/11/06   62.   AND TO THINK 20:31  |  BEN 11/11/06   63.   What about Darfur ??? (Hypocrite UN) 20:48  |  Victor_the_Egyptian 11/11/06   64.   13: Swiss, of course you would 20:48  |  David Teich 11/11/06   65.   Pals martur them selfs in Beit Hanun for 21:00  |  Stranger 11/11/06   66.   Take Heart Israelis - Another UN Victory 21:01  |  chet 11/11/06   67.   Well, again the UN is proved irrelevant. 21:01  |  Mark 11/11/06   68.   SWISS 21:07  |  Stranger 11/11/06   69.   U.S. Veto 21:09  |  gregdn 11/11/06   70.   I am ashame to be American 21:11  |  SAM 11/11/06   71.   Of course the US vetoed the resolution. 21:22  |  Colin Wright 11/11/06   72.   # 39 settler David Teich I am afraid, you just outed.....