Clinton says US won't respond to Arafat death rumors

July 8, 2012: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks during a plenary session of an international conference on Afghan civilian assistance at a hotel in Tokyo. (AP)

HANOI, Vietnam – U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says the U.S. will wait for the results of any new investigation into Yasser Arafat's death and won't be responding to rumors.

Speaking in Vietnam, Clinton said she was looking forward to visiting Israel next week as part of a two-week foreign tour.

She told reporters Tuesday she would discuss a broad range of issues with Israeli leaders, including Middle East peace efforts.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has approved digging up Arafat's remains and wants an international probe of his predecessor's mysterious 2004 death. A Swiss lab says it detected elevated traces of a lethal radioactive agent on clothing said to be Arafat's, and some Palestinians are pointing to this as evidence that he was poisoned.

Clinton says speculation won't help the process.