Sorry about that, I was completely wrong earlier in reference to the executive summary and recommendations of the Mehlis Report. It was actually a link to Syria After Lebanon, Lebanon After Syria, a report by the International Crisis Group, from April 12 this year, no less.

An Australian – Nguyen Tuong Van (who says we’re not multicultural?) – in Singapore is expected to be executed by hanging in the next 10 days for smuggling heroin.

NEWS.com.au

The Age

SMH

Some geek news:
Higher Education Podcasts linked to from MetaFilter. Stanford and Princeton, amongst others, offer speech and lecture podcasts to the public.

Two way browser called Flock is also talked about at MetaFilter, with links. It is to interact between blogging, photo-sharing, etc, although it may be not so useful. It’s totally for geeks like me.

But I may not be as geek as I’d like to think. I can’t figure out how to transfer my domain registrar or get WordPress set up at my ‘.com’.

UPDATE: The lawyer for one of Saddam Hussein’s co-defendents who was abducted yesterday? Found dead a few hours later and identified today.

BBC – Saddam trial lawyer is found dead

CNN – Hussein co-defendant’s lawyer killed

I had assumed that, because the majority of the insurgency is Sunni (more likely to support Saddam), lawyers defending Saddam and his counterparts would not have been in nearly as much danger as those prosecuting them. I assumed wrong.

Alright, I hadn’t actually had time to read some of those links, notably the executive summary of the Mehlis Report from the International Crisis Group and the spokesman’s briefing. Doing that now, will extract what I think is important.

Wow, I can’t read the report, but the International Herald Tribune story – UN report on Hariri rejected by Syria leads with this:

The United Nations investigation into the killing of the former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri is focusing on the powerful brother-in-law of President Bashar al-Assad of Syria as the main suspect, according to a diplomat with close knowledge of the investigation.

Also said to be the second most powerful man in Syria, and probably second in line to the presidency if Bashar himself were ousted for any reason. And directly responsible? I wish I could read that report…

Googling “full text” “mehlis report”, I came up with that link to the statements by the spokesman for the secretary-general. Directly under that was link titled The Secretay-General’s Statments, but following the link led instead to a page that really had nothing to do with Kofi Annan talking about the Mehlis Report.

Have they removed that page for any particular reason? Who knows, but thanks to the Google cache, the Secretary-General’s Statements should still be available here.

This is what Kofi Annan (SG) said:

Q: [inaudible] why do you keep saying you are concerned what would happen in light of the Mehlis report? You have been urging, through your spokesman, for restraint. What is worrying you? Why are you calling for restraint? What are you afraid of?

SG: I haven’t said I’m afraid or I’m worried. So relax. I haven’t said I’m afraid or I’m worried.

Q: [inaudible] that you called for restraint, Sir, today, so that I’m following up.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, why did you ask that Terje Roed-Larsen postpone his briefing to the Council from this week to next week? Is it too many blows for one country in one week?

SG: No. The Council has lots of work and its agenda has to be managed. And my own time also has to be managed, and we need to decide what I am going to take up first, and when, and what other issues are on my agenda. And Mehlis was coming in to see me this week, and I intend to release his report as quickly as I can. Then I will turn my attention to the report on 1559 and also deliver it to the Council. So, it doesn’t – What is important is the Council gets both reports this month. It doesn’t matter which goes first, and I don’t think we are trying to delay to “ease the blow” for one country or the other.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, you said earlier in the week that you wanted to try and avoid politicization of the Mehlis report. In a region like the Middle East, how, realistically, is that possible? And are there any suggestions or is there any advice you would have on how this could be done?

SG: Yesterday I indicated that this is a technical exercise, a juridical exercise, and we need to keep it pure. And I was going to keep it that way. There may be politicization of the issue by others in the region or elsewhere, but I don’t think it should be my business as Secretary-General to be engaged or encourage politicization. So I would give a technical and judicial report – a prosecutorial report – done by Mehlis to the Council. And, of course, Mehlis’s report is the beginning, not the end, because the magistrates and others will have to follow through on that report and decide whom to charge and whom to bring to the dock. But you are right that you can’t prevent people from politicizing it and implying all sorts of – I’ve read things in the papers, in the press, which has really surprised me, and some of it is pure fiction, honestly.

Now I need to know what the Terje Roed-Larsen report is about.

Spokesman for the Secretary General, Stephane Dujarric, gave a noon briefing at the UN. These are the highlights of his comments about the Mehlis Report, the investigation into the death of Rafiq Hariri.

Detlev Mehlis, who compiled the report, will brief the Security Council on Tuesday, October 25.

The Mehlis Report in pdf should be available on the UN website, but I get a file error trying to open it. Perhaps you will have more luck

Looks like Australia has beaten New Zealand 28-26 in the second Tri-Nations (rugby league) game.

UN report (Executive Summary and Recommmendations at that link, with full report if you subscribe) says Syria and Lebanon probably involved in killing of Rafiq Hariri, former Lebanese premier.

I thought if anyone would be abducted it would be one of the magistrates trying Saddam Hussein. Instead, the lawyer for Awad Hamad al-Bandar, one of Hussein’s co-defendants, was kidnapped

Tom DeLay, former house majority leader (bigwig for Bush) was arrested, then released on bail. There’s a lot of talk about his mug shot being the prettiest ever seen, but it’s not like he was pulled out of bed or off the streets at 3am. He turned himself in, had his photo taken, posted $10,000 bail and left 30 minutes later.

I found this amusing. LostRemote’s guide to the new newswriting.

Overheard from university union voting booth next to me today

James Schmidt. I know him! I’d better vote for him then.

Democracy at work, dear friends.

Alright. I’ve decided I’m not posting any more on that issue. Sure, maybe I’m dropping the newsworthy hot potato, but I don’t think there is anything I can add to the dialogue from here on out. The story is big, big media will cover it and, hopefully, ask the big questions and demand big answers.

Really though, reaction in Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan in the next few days, and other likely areas of unrest will determine whether this story fizzles out or becomes a very big issue.

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