Goldstone invited to visit Israel

Occupied Jerusalem: Israel's interior minister says jurist Richard Goldstone has accepted an invitation to visit Israel, a significant turn after Israel refused to cooperate with his UN team investigating Israeli conduct in the Gaza offensive two years ago.

Eli Yishai told Israel Army radio Tuesday he invited Goldstone to tour southern Israeli communities that sustained Hamas rocket fire.

Yishai says he told Goldstone it was "courageous" to reconsider the report and asked the retired South African judge to officially retract it. Yishai didn't say if Goldstone agreed to do so.