Japanese media report that Tokyo may end its supply support mission for US-led forces in Iraq next year, under pressure from the powerful opposition. Japan has some 210 Air Self-Defense Force personnel in Kuwait, from where they airlift supplies to Iraq. In 2006, it withdrew 600 ground troops sent to southern Iraq as a gesture of support two years earlier. "Thinking about the state of parliament, it is extremely difficult to extend" a special law which enabled the country to send troops to Iraq, the Asahi newspaper quoted Taku Yamasaki of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). The law is set to expire in July 2009. The newspaper also quoted an unnamed executive of the LDP's Buddhist-backed junior partner, New Komeito, as saying it was time to consider withdrawal.

From the Iraq Freedom Congress and the Opening for Peace, Equality and Nexus (OPEN), Japan, May 19:

Joint Statement to Stop 'Gender Cleansing' in Iraq under the name of 'honor killing' and other gender-based violence against women, and to Demand the Immediate Withdrawal of Occupation Forces
March 2008 was the fifth anniversary of the start of war on Iraq by the US military. During the five-year period, the death toll of Iraqis exceeded one million, and several million have been displaced as refugees in and out of Iraq. Still escalating are indiscriminate attacks by the US forces and attacks by local militias that target civilians. The death toll of the US soldiers hit 4,000 and the number of suicide cases among them is reportedly on the increase.

The founder and chief commander of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), Manuel "Tirofijo" (Sureshot) Marulanda, has died, the Colombian government announced May 24."Through military intelligence, we learned Pedro Antonio Marin, alias Manuel Marulanda or Sureshot, the principal chief of the FARC, is dead," the Defense Ministry said in a statement. "The cause of death is still to be confirmed." (Reuters, May 24) Carlos Lozano, editor of Bogotá's leftist weekly Voz, said Marulanda's death, "if this is what has occurred," will leave a serious gap in the FARC's command structure. But he was confident the FARC would survive, and that Alfonso Cano (nom de guerre of Guillermo Sàenz Vargas) will take over as top commander. (El Tiempo, Bogotá, May 25)

From Reuters, May 22:

Tito Santana, one of the last tribal kings in the Americas, has been driven into exile from his lands deep in the Panamanian jungle by a fight over a hydroelectric project that has divided his tiny kingdom.

As part of an emergency appropriations bill, the Senate May 22 approved $350 million in drug war aid to Mexico, with an adittional $100 million for Central America, the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Reducing the Bush administration's request for $500 million to Mexico and $50 million to Central America, the Senate also adopted language that would hold up a quarter of the funds until the State Department rules that Mexico is meeting human rights markers. The House approved $400 million for Mexico, with similar provisions. Differences need to be worked out in a joint conference. "Human rights abuses in the army are routinely investigated by the military itself, and that leads to impunity," said Tamara Taraciuk of Human Rights Watch. "The big issue is accountability." (NYT, May 23) The Senate bill also provides $165 billion for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan into 2009. (AP, May 23)

ETA commander Francisco Javier López Peña AKA "Thierry"—on the run since 1983 and held responsible for ending the last ceasefire—was arrested late May 20 in Bordeaux in a joint operation involving the French Gendarmerie and Spanish Guardia Civil. Arrested with Thierry at a downtown apartment were Ainhoa Ozaeta Mendiondo, Igor Suberbiola and Jon Salaberría, a former member of the Basque parliament and Batasuna leader. All four were armed, but did not resist. Ozaeta Mendiondo is the voice who reads ETA's communiqués in media releases, and said to be the lover of the son of veteran militant Josu Ternera. (ThinkSpain, May 21)

Tashi YangtsoFrom the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy, May 21:

Three Tibetan nuns from Tehor Nyagay Nunnery, in Kardze County were arrested by the County Chinese security forces for staging a peaceful protest, according to reliable sources within Tibet.

The Chinese government is refusing to issue visas to thousands of Hindus seeking to make the traditional summer pilgrimage to a Tibetan mountain said to be the home of Lord Shiva. The Indian foreign ministry, which is working with Chinese authorities to make arrangements for almost 1,000 pilgrims selected by lottery, said Beijing had informed New Delhi it was not ready for the visitors—presumably due to the ongoing unrest.