A senior Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) official admitted for the first time on Wednesday that the Palestinian leadership made a mistake by delaying action on a United Nations report on war crimes in Gaza.

"We have the courage to admit there was a mistake," said Yasser Abed Rabbo, a member of the PLO executive committee and an advisor to President Mahmoud Abbas, according to AP.

Abbas’ government buckled to US pressure last week and withdrew a motion from the UN Human Rights Council to take action on a report by South African Judge Richard Goldstone.

Deferral of action on the report caused widespread public outrage among Palestinians, including calls for Abbas’ resignation and the dissolution of the Palestinian Authority.