August 2, 2003

The Daily Telegraph in the United Kingdom claims attempts by the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) to destroy allegedly important documents about its treatment of BBC source Dr. David Kelly in the weeks before his suicide were foiled by a security guard, who found the documents scheduled for destruction and called the police. The MoD insists the documents were not that important but will now be preserved and supplied to the Hutton Inquiry into the Kelly case.
The United Nations authorizes an international peacekeeping force for Liberia. The United States is criticized by members of the Security Council for insisting that UN peacekeepers serving in Liberia be granted immunity from war crimes prosecution. The U.S. demand is described by its critics as a breach of international law.
A huge condominium complex under construction in San Diego, California is destroyed, supposedly by the Earth Liberation Front. [1]
José Bové, a radical French activist against genetically modified food, is released from prison after serving only five weeks of a 10-month jail sentence.
Israeli Attorney General Elyakim Rubinstein publicly rebukes Ariel Sharon's son Gilad for refusing to cooperate with an investigation into graft and influence peddling. [2]
Scientists announce that the ozone layer may be showing signs of recovery due to an international ban on chlorofluorocarbons. [3]