Crossword Genius

Murder of two fools by one country (13)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

assassination

'murder' is the definition.
(assassination is a kind of murder)

'two fools by one country' is the wordplay.
'two fools' can mean two replacements for 'fool'.
'fool' becomes 'ass' (both can mean a stupid person).
'fool' becomes 'ass' (both can mean a stupid person).
'by' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'one' becomes 'i' (Roman numeral).
'country' becomes 'nation' (synonyms).
'ass'+'ass'+'i'+'nation'='ASSASSINATION'

'of' acts as a link.

(Other definitions for assassination that I've seen before include "Murder of a public figure" , "Ordered killing" , "Murder of a prominent person" , "Merciful, lenient" , "Politically-inspired murder" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
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