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UN admits to deleting names of top ranking Syrians from findings
Deepening the impression of a strong Syrian connection to the killing, chief UN investigator Detlev Mehlis acknowledged Friday that he deleted references from the report implicating two relatives of Syria's president, raising questions about whether the UN tried to soften the inquiry's findings.
In an embarrassment for the UN, a version of the report sent to journalists late Thursday included text that had been deleted for the final draft.
The most significant change came in a paragraph that cited a witness as saying Assad's brother, Maher Assad, and his brother-in-law, Assef Shawkat, were among those who decided to kill Hariri.
Mehlis told reporters Friday that he deleted the names when he learned his report to the UN Security Council would be made public. He said he did not want to suggest the men were guilty when they had not faced trial.
-Rudey
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