In the World

HONG KONG - In a stunning reversal, Hong Kong's highest court yesterday overturned the conviction of Nancy Kissel, accused of killing her banker husband by sedating him with a laced milkshake before bludgeoning him.

Kissel was convicted four years ago in a case that grabbed headlines and spawned a book and TV special with its lurid tale of adultery, drug use, and sex abuse in the rarified world of wealthy American expatriates.

Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal said that prosecutors had improperly cross-examined Kissel during the trial and that the judge wrongly allowed hearsay evidence.

Kissel, 45, a mother of three who is four years into a life sentence, will remain in prison but can apply for bail pending her new trial, the court said.

- AP

WARSAW, Poland - Polish police recovered 11 tons of human blood plasma that had been stolen from a U.S. company and was on its way to Austria, officials said yesterday.

The truck with a freezer unit carrying the plasma, worth more than $1.4 million, was stolen while the driver made a rest stop in Germany, police said. It was taken across the border into Poland, where it was seized.

The plasma was packed in boxes originating from Harrisonburg, Va., where BioLife Plasma Services has operations. Spokeswoman Laura Jacobs said the company was working with authorities to determine how the theft occurred.

Polish police believe thieves stole the plasma, used to treat a wide variety of medical disorders, in hopes of selling it in Eastern Europe.

- AP

JERUSALEM - The Israeli military has begun rerouting a hotly disputed section of its West Bank security barrier, marking a victory for Palestinians who fought for five years to win back access to their land, officials said yesterday.

The move comes 21/2 years after the Israeli Supreme Court ruled that the fence improperly cut through the Palestinian village of Bilin to enlarge an Israeli settlement.

Bilin leaders celebrated the arrival of work crews but said they would continue to protest until the barrier is removed completely.

Under the new route to be completed this year, about 170 acres of vineyards, olive and almond trees, and other agricultural land will be accessible again to Palestinian owners.

- Los Angeles Times

The British government said Facebook had removed the profiles of 30 U.K. inmates at its request after several incidents in which prisoners used the social-networking site to organize crime or taunt others. Families United met with Justice Secretary Jack Straw, who said the government would act "to tackle those cases."

An Italian court ordered that an ancient Greek statue bought by the J. Paul Getty Museum be seized and returned to Italy. The Los Angeles museum said it would "vigorously" appeal the decision involving Victorious Youth, which dates from 330 to 100 B.C. It was pulled from the sea off Fano in 1964.