Jan. 8 (Bloomberg) -- The United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution calling for an “immediate, durable and fully respected” cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, “leading to the full withdrawal” of Israel’s forces from the Palestinian territory.

The U.S. abstained from the vote, and the resolution passed, 14 to 0.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the U.S. supported the resolution, though abstained to await a possible Israeli- Palestinian cease-fire stemming from Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s mediation.

Israel’s Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said earlier today the Jewish state would continue its military operation in the Gaza Strip because Hamas rocket assaults haven’t been halted. Israeli forces again struck targets today throughout Gaza from the air, land and sea, while Palestinians fired rockets at Israel.

“Responsibility for the current hostilities lies squarely with Hamas,” Gabriela Shalev, Israel’s ambassador to the UN said after the vote. “The international community must focus its attention on the cessation of Hamas’s terrorist activity and make clear that a terrorist organization can never be a legitimate leadership.”

Distribution of Aid

The measure calls for the unimpeded distribution of aid to Gaza, welcomes Egypt’s effort to start Israeli-Palestinian cease-fire talks, and “condemns all violence and hostilities directed against civilians and all acts of terrorism.”

A proposed reference to rocket fire by Hamas into Israel, which some council members sought, was deleted.

Hamas, which controls Gaza, is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S., European Union and Israel.

All UN members are asked in the resolution to “intensify efforts to provide arrangements and guarantees in Gaza in order to sustain a durable cease-fire and calm, including to prevent illicit trafficking in arms and ammunition.”

“Israel must now put an end to its aggression against the Palestinian people and fully withdraw Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, so we may have the opportunity to heal the wounds of our people and to rebuild what the brutal Israeli war machine has destroyed,” Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki said.

The call for a cease-fire “must be fully respected by all parties,” UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said.

Rice, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner earlier today abandoned their preference for a softer Security Council statement on Gaza and gave Arab ministers a draft resolution. The Arabs had pushed for a resolution since the conflict began.

The final major compromise leading to the vote combined U.S., British and French desire for a text that stresses the urgency of a cease-fire and the Arab wish for a stronger call for an end to hostilities.

To contact the reporter on this story: Bill Varner at the United Nations at wvarner@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: January 8, 2009 23:10 EST