The UN Security Council failed overnight to adopt a resolution condemning the killing of dozens of Palestinians in clashes with Israeli security forces over the past five days, diplomats said.
After more than five hours of discussions, interrupted by calls to their respective capitals for consultations, the 15 members of the council decided to adjourn and meet again later Tuesday, diplomats said.
The closed-door emergency meeting was held at the request of the Palestinians after five days of running battles between Israeli and Palestinian security forces and civilians left 56 dead, all but three of them Palestinians or Arab Israelis, and about 1,000 wounded.
The United States refused to sign on to the Palestinian-proposed text it felt was too harsh towards Israel, while two non-permanent members, Malaysia and Tunisia, rejected an alternative "presidential statement" on the grounds it was too lenient toward the Israelis, diplomats said.
The United States had backed a draft that did not explicitly mention Israel and read: "The Security Council condemns the acts of provocation, the violence and the excessive use of deadly force against Palestinian civilians in the past few days."
Palestine's UN observer, Nasser Al-Kidwa, felt the statement was inadequate.
"We don't think that a presidential statement is the appropriate response by the Council to the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, and the gravity of the situation,” he said.
"We think that the Council ought to consider a draft resolution which has a binding nature," he added.
Before the meeting, Al-Kidwa had told journalists, "We want to see some concrete measures taken by the Council or by the UN at large."
He repeated his call that "some kind of impartial investigation" be carried out into the outbreak of violence which followed a visit by Israeli opposition hardliner Ariel Sharon to the al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem.
Earlier Monday, in a letter, Al-Kidwa, who requested the emergency meeting of the Security Council, accused Israel of using "excessive lethal force" and war crimes in Jerusalem.
Al-Kidwa said in his letter that "what is urgently needed at this time is ensuring the withdrawal of Israeli security forces" from the al-Aqsa mosque compound.
He called for an inquiry into the last few days' events, saying "we believe that several Israeli soldiers have committed war crimes and must be held accountable."
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat have agreed to meet Wednesday in Paris together with US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright in a bid to revive peace negotiations in the wake of the violence -- UNITED NATIONS(AFP)
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