Say I have module foo.py:

        def a(x):
           def b():
               x
           del x
        
If I run foo.py under Python 2.4.4 I get:

          File "foo.py", line 4
            del x
        SyntaxError: can not delete variable 'x' referenced in nested
        scope

Under Python 2.6 and Python 3.0 I get:

        SyntaxError: can not delete variable 'x' referenced in nested
        scope


The difference is under Python 2.4 I get a traceback with the lineno and
offending line, but I do not get a traceback in Pythons 2.6 and 3.0.

This also kinda relates to the 2to3 tool.  See:

http://groups.google.com/group/comp.lang.python/browse_frm/thread/a6600c80f8c3c60c/4d804532ea09aae7

Somehow you caught the only SyntaxError that forgets to add filename and 
line information.
Patch attached, at the expense of not displaying the variable name (it 
should be obvious if the line is displayed)

+1 compiler_error should be used anyway.

Thanks for looking into this.

Ok... I applied your patch (actually it does not apply against Python
3.0 so I had to change it manually).

Now I'm not sure if this is still an error in the compiler or if it's
truly a problem on my end, but the line given in the error doesn't
contain a del statement at all.

The code basically looks like this:

def method(self):
    ...
                success = False
                e = None
                try:
                        success, mydepgraph, dropped_tasks =
resume_depgraph(
                                self.settings, self.trees,
self._mtimedb, self.myopts,
                                myparams, self._spinner,
skip_unsatisfied=True)
                except depgraph.UnsatisfiedResumeDep as e:
                        mydepgraph = e.depgraph
                        dropped_tasks = set()

With the patch, the error occurs at "dropped_tasks = set()" in the
except clause.  The first time that "dropped_tasks" is used in the
entire module is in the try clause.

This is a horrible piece of code (I did not write it).  Do you think the
SyntaxError message could be masking what the real error is?

Again, the python2 version of this module imports fine, but when I run
2to3 on it I get the SyntaxError.  The line of code in question,
however, is unmodified by 2to3.

I think I understand. This simple code does not compile with python 3.0:

def f():
    e = None
    def g():
        e

    try:
        pass
    except Exception as e:
        pass # SyntaxError here???

The reason is that since 3.0, a "del e" statement is generated by the
compiler (see http://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-3110/#semantic-changes)
and this conflicts with the first block of the function.

This issue is much more complicated than it seemed...
A solution could be to generate "e=None" instead of "del e".

I filed issue4617 about the hidden "del e" problem.

Meanwhile, you may try to change some variable names, specially the
exception target (the 'e' in 'except Exception as e')