UN Security Council vote expected on Hormuz resolution

The UN Security Council is expected to vote Tuesday on a watered-down resolution calling for the unblocking of the Strait of Hormuz -- far from the sponsoring Gulf countries' initial goal of obtaining clearance to free it by force.The vote is expected at 11:00 am (0300 GMT), though the outcome is not certain. The text in question has been diluted in recent days in the hope of avoiding rejection.A draft seen by AFP on Monday no longer mentions authorization to use force -- even defensively.