U. South Florida student killed during duty in Iraq
(U-WIRE) GAINESVILLE, Fla. – A University of South Florida student and Gainesville, Fla., native died Thursday during a vehicle accident in Iraq.

Florida Army National Guard Specialist Cpl. John “Travis” Rivero, 23, was likely helping to secure medical resources in western Iraq. He was riding in the turret area, the gunner’s position, when his Humvee overturned.

Rivero is the first Florida National Guardsman to die overseas, said Lt. Col. Ron Tittle, chief of public affairs for the Florida Army National Guard.

Rivero, assigned to Company C, 2nd Battalion of the 124th Infantry Regiment from Orlando, lived in Tampa where he attended USF. Before being deployed, he studied computer science and engineering for a semester and was on the university cheerleading squad.
-Independent Florida Alligator (U. Florida)

Harvard law prof. to lead war crimes tribunal
(UWIRE) CAMBRIDGE, Mass.- A visiting professor at Harvard Law School will be the chief prosecutor for the first permanent international war crimes tribunal. Professor Luis Moreno Ocampo was unanimously chosen Monday to be the chief prosecutor of the newly formed International Criminal Court.

The ICC, run under the auspices of the United Nations, was designed as a permanent replacement for the temporary ad hoc agencies that have prosecuted war crimes in the past.

As chief prosecutor, Moreno Ocampo, who is an Argentine national, will lead investigations and prosecute cases against suspected war criminals when national judicial systems are deemed unable or unwilling to pursue the case.

Although the Clinton administration supported the ICC during its formative stages, President George W. Bush has declined to sign on to the court, arguing the tribunal may castigate American soldiers and military officials with unwarranted or overblown charges brought by countries harboring hostility toward the United States.
-Harvard Crimson (Harvard U.)

Study abroad programs struggle with SARS
(U-WIRE) PROVIDENCE, R.I. – With the number of cases of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome rising daily across the world, universities have been struggling with the question of how to handle study abroad programs in SARS-affected regions.

Some schools recalled students already abroad, while others canceled summer programs. Some schools chose to leave the decision to students after sending advisory letters and in some cases, face masks.

Syracuse University was one of the first to cut short its program, recalling 30 students from China and Hong Kong in early April because “it was a situation we couldn’t control,” said Ryan Williams, assistant director of admissions at Syracuse. Students completed the first two parts of the three-module program – fieldwork and class time – but missed out on the internship component, “the most interesting part of the abroad experience,” Williams said.

Last Wednesday, the Education Abroad Program for the University of California campuses decided to recall 44 students studying abroad in Beijing, said Bruce Hanna, director of communications for EAP.
-Brown Daily Herald (Brown U.)