[...]
Tackling several conspiracy theories, Gadhafi suggested that the "swine flu" virus was a military tool or corporate weapon produced from a lab, and hinted Israel was behind President John F. Kennedy's assassination in 1963.
And he argued the Taliban should be able to form an "Islamic emirate" without being accused of being terrorists. After all, he said, the Vatican formed a similar religious country.
At one hour and 36 minutes, Gadhafi's speech didn't rival Cuban leader Fidel Castro's record soliloquy in 1960, which lasted four hours. But it more than doubled the time taken by Obama, who spoke for 40 minutes. Speakers are encouraged to limit their remarks to 15 minutes.
The United States delegation was represented during Gadhafi's speech by a low-level note-taker. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Susan Rice departed before Gadhafi took the podium.
