U.N. assembly set to call for probes of Gaza war

By Patrick Worsnip

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. General Assembly debated on Wednesday a resolution that would call on Israel and the Palestinians to investigate charges of war crimes during the Gaza war detailed in a report that has infuriated Israel.

The nonbinding resolution on the so-called Goldstone report, which looked certain to be approved by the 192-nation assembly, also requests U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to send the 575-page report to the Security Council.

The report, commissioned by the U.N. Human Rights Council and published on September 15, lambasted both sides in the December-January conflict, which killed more than 1,000 Palestinians and 13 Israelis, but was harsher towards Israel.

Diplomats say there is little chance that the report or the Arab-drafted resolution could lead to punishment of either side. But it has enraged Israel and galvanized American Jews.

In the assembly debate, Arab envoys praised the report by South African jurist Richard Goldstone and demanded an end to what they called the Jewish state's impunity. But Israel damned the document as "conceived in hate and executed in sin."

There is no veto in the assembly and the resolution looked sure to win a majority. But with more than 40 envoys listed to speak, most of them from Arab and other Muslim countries, it was unclear whether the vote would take place on Wednesday.

Israel's ally the United States was one of a small number of countries expected to vote against the resolution. In a clear warning to the administration, the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday urged President Barack Obama to oppose U.N. endorsement of Goldstone's findings.

EU MAY ABSTAIN