It was the day for final speeches and both Ban Ki-Moon and Barack Obama grabbed the opportunity with both hands when they each took a turn at addressing the UN General Assembly for the last time. 

The UN Secretary General took aim at the Assad regime and its partners in a rare outburst when he accused them of being "cowards" and "having blood on their hands" for bombing aid convoys, causing the death of thousands of civilians and inflicting systematic torture on their adversaries.

Shortly after, US President Barack Obama served up a classy speech compared to those by his aspiring successor Republican Donald Trump. He condemned strongmen, nationalism and the isolation walls bring, and did not mention Trump once. 

Predictably, class was absent in the latest comments made by Philippines firebrand President Rodrigo Duterte. You must read Lindsay Murdoch's report of Duterte's reaction to European critics to believe a head of state could actually say that. Openly, at least.

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