Summer is here!!! Have I mentioned already how summer is my favorite time of the year? I love the kind of heat waves that seem to make everyone else around me suffer. I’m sorry, I just do. And now, one of those heat waves is approaching Hungary, so this is my time!

I know, I am always told I should move to some distant part of the world where tempretures and moisture are constantly through the roof. My hair would be a mess all the time, but I would be happy! 🙂

Do you have any suggestions where I should go?

Until then, let’s see what we’ve got from this past week:

On world affairs:

93,000 Killed in Syria, With No End in Sight

Since the last report published in January, the estimated figure raised by more than 30,000. And still no hope for a diplomatic solution in the near future.

UN Chief Hates the White House’s Plan to Arm Syria’s Rebels

Secretary General Ban Ki-moon criticized the White House’s plan to aid the Syrian opposition with arms.

Why the NSA leaks should worry the UN Security Council (but probably won’t)

Great piece from Colum Lynch not just about recent revelations of US data mining, but about espionage and the UN in general throughout the history of the organization.

On the legal side:

Bradley Manning and Adolf Eichmann

I know, when I saw these two names in the same headline at first I was also like “what?!”. But this is indeed an interesting piece drawing parallels not just between these two figures and their trials, but also justice and law, domestic and international law. Worths taking a few minutes to read.

Congressional Briefing on The International Criminal Court and US-ICC relations

I am currently taking this course on Coursera, called Introduction to International Criminal Law, where we basically learn about the ICC, and that makes me see these questions through a different lense. Seems like the US is getting closer to the ICC, doesn’t it?

ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I rejects challenge to the admissibility  of the case against Laurent Gbagbo

And one more on the ICC. Rightously so the Pre-Trial Chamber decided that the former president of Cote d’Ivoire can still be tried in The Hague.

Elections of the week:

Hassan Rouhani, a moderate, is Iran’s next president

So, Iran has decided that Ahmadijenad has to go. But how will this affect the Islamic Republic’s future, especially its relations with its neighbours and the West?

Good news of the week:

Hungarian hostages freed from Syrian captivity

Two Hungarian hostages kidnapped 14 months ago in Syria had been freed this week by the Hungarian counter-terrorism force. The two Hungarian citizens were working for an oil company in Syria when captured last year. Hungarian news reports claim that there were no ransom payed, the hostages had been freed after talks with their captors.

Twitter bio of the week:

Hillary Clinton is now on Twitter as is the rest of her family! 🙂 People already started speculating about what TBD holds, Madame President, perhaps? I guess we’ll have to wait and see. This just started me thinking I should be more creative with my own Twitter bio, though. 🙂