[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 232 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 232

  Recognizing the recent admission by Richard Goldstone of the deeply 
  flawed conclusions in his report to the United Nations Human Rights 
  Council and urging the Administration to take steps to reverse the 
                  damage done by the Goldstone Report.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 15, 2011

     Mr. Dold (for himself and Mr. Peters) submitted the following 
   resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Recognizing the recent admission by Richard Goldstone of the deeply 
  flawed conclusions in his report to the United Nations Human Rights 
  Council and urging the Administration to take steps to reverse the 
                  damage done by the Goldstone Report.

Whereas the United Nations Human Rights Council commissioned its ``fact-
        finding'' Goldstone Report following the three-week, 2008 to 2009 war 
        between Hamas in Gaza and the State of Israel;
Whereas this war grew out of Hamas' ongoing, deliberate attacks, intended to 
        terrorize the communities and the men, women, and children of southern 
        Israel;
Whereas 4,246 rockets and 4,180 mortar rounds were fired into the State of 
        Israel from Gaza, from 2001 to 2008;
Whereas the Goldstone Report alleged that the State of Israel deliberately 
        targeted civilians as a matter of policy in its war with Hamas;
Whereas the Goldstone Report accused Israel of committing war crimes, and 
        possibly crimes against humanity;
Whereas the Goldstone Report has been employed as a key source by those in the 
        international community in an ongoing effort to isolate the State of 
        Israel and delegitimize its very existence;
Whereas the United States repudiated the Goldstone Report as ``deeply flawed'' 
        when it first emerged;
Whereas Richard Goldstone served as the principal author of the Goldstone 
        Report;
Whereas Richard Goldstone has now backed off from the Goldstone Report's 
        conclusion that Israel intentionally targeted civilians as a matter of 
        policy in its war with Hamas;
Whereas Richard Goldstone now states that, ``civilians were not intentionally 
        targeted [by Israel] as a matter of policy'';
Whereas Richard Goldstone now states that, ``If I had known then what I know 
        now, the Goldstone Report would have been a much different document'';
Whereas Richard Goldstone now states that it was the Hamas' rockets that were 
        ``purposely and indiscriminately aimed at civilian targets'';
Whereas the United Nations Human Rights Council has demonstrated a history of 
        extreme bias against the State of Israel;
Whereas in the first 100 days of 2011, over 175 rockets and mortars have been 
        fired from Gaza into the State of Israel;
Whereas in 2010, 238 rockets and mortars were fired from Gaza into the State of 
        Israel;
Whereas, on April 7, 2011, a missile fired from Gaza struck a school bus of 
        Israeli children;
Whereas the State of Israel has, as do all sovereign nations in the world, the 
        right to defend itself against terror attacks on its citizens;
Whereas the Goldstone Report unfairly generated great harm to Israel's 
        reputation, and can potentially continue to harm Israel and its citizens 
        in the future; and
Whereas the United States must exhibit leadership in beginning to reverse the 
        damage done by the Goldstone Report: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that 
the United States should--
            (1) work to inform members of the United Nations General 
        Assembly of Judge Goldstone's reconsideration of his own report 
        and admission of its deeply flawed and inaccurate conclusion;
            (2) block future United Nations actions premised on the 
        falsehoods in the Goldstone Report;
            (3) reaffirm the right of any sovereign nation to defend 
        itself against terror deliberately targeting its civilians; and
            (4) continue to seek major reforms of the United Nations 
        Human Rights Council.
                                 <all>