Palestinians won't bring anti-Israel draft to General Assembly

NEW YORK - The Palestinians have decided not to bring a draft resolution condemning Israel's military operation in the northern Gaza Strip for a vote before the United Nations General Assembly, despite an American veto of the draft in the Security Council on Tuesday.

The United States on Tuesday vetoed the Security Council draft resolution demanding that Israel stop a major offensive in the Gaza Strip that has cost at least 80 Palestinian lives.

A total of 11 nations voted in favor. Britain, Germany and Romania abstained on the measure drafted by Arab nations.

When past efforts to pass anti-Israel resolutions in the Security Council have been quashed due to American vetoes, the Palestinians have tended to push for a vote in the General Assembly where no one single country has veto power. The Palestinians are also generally guaranteed a majority there due to support from the bloc of non-aligned nations.

However, UN sources said Palestinian UN observer Nasser Al-Kidwa will not make a motion to bring the vetoed draft before the General Assembly. The Palestinians will instead wait for a later meeting on the West Bank separation barrier and for the American presidential elections.

The draft resolution, submitted to the council in an emergency meeting convened at the request of Arab nations on Monday, calls for an immediate halt to the offensive and calls on Israel and the Palestinians to immediately implement the internationally-backed road map peace plan.

Israeli Ambassador to the UN Dan Gillerman expressed his happiness after the vote and said that the resolution only condemned the victim and not the attacker.

Gillerman added that the nations which abstained showed courage while those that voted in favor were cowards.

U.S. Ambassador to the UN John Danforth cast the U.S. veto after British and German efforts to find compromise language failed.

"Once again, the resolution is lopsided and unbalanced," Danforth told the council just before voting "no."

"It is dangerously disingenuous because of its many material omissions. Because of this lack of balance, because of these omissions the resolution lacks credibility and deserves a 'no' vote," he said.

After the vote, Algeria's UN Ambassador Abdallah Baali, the only Arab member of the council, thanked the resolution's supporters and noted that the measure got more than the minimum nine "yes" votes needed for adoption absent a veto by one of the five permanent council members.

"It is a sad day for the Palestinians and it is a sad day for justice," Baali said.

The U.S. had earlier on Tuesday rejected a Russian-sponsored compromise to balance a UN Security Council condemnation of Israel for its operation in the Gaza Strip with a condemnation of Hamas for firing Qassam rockets at the western Negev town of Sderot.

Danforth had said Monday that if the resolution was passed "it would be a very terrible statement for the Security Council to make" because he said it acquiesces in terror against Israelis.

	Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Dan Gillerman. (Archive)