Thousands of protesters again blocked major roads across Honduras July 16 to demand the return of ousted President Manuel Zelaya. In a telephone call broadcast to protesters, Zelaya said: "I call upon you to maintain the resistance. Do not desist for a moment, or else Honduras is doomed [derrumba]." Meanwhile in Costa Rica, President Oscar Arias is proposing a "government of national reconciliation" in the dialogue he is mediating between Zelaya and de facto President Roberto Micheletti. Arias said both sides have agreed to the notion of a unity government that would include members of all political parties and serve as a check on presidential powers—and to an amnesty, both for Zelaya and those who ousted him. (AFP, NYT, July 16)

Colombia's government says it is close to sealing an agreement with Washington which would make the country the hub for US anti-drug operations in South America. The deal would give the US access to air bases in Colombia to gather intelligence and support operations across the continent. The administration of President Alvaro Uribe rejected accusations that the deal would infringe the country's sovereignty. The US was forced to seek a new center for regional operations after Ecuador refused to renew the lease on its military base at Manta. Ecuador's President Rafael Correa has said he would rather "cut off his arm" than allow the US to stay on at Manta. (BBC News, July 16)

FARC guerrilla Gerardo Antonio Aguilar AKA "César" was extradited to the US July 16 to face drug charges. "César" guarded hostages including Ingrid Betancourt before his arrest in July 2008. He was turned over to the DEA and flow to Washington after being transfered from his Bogotá prison to El Catam military airfield. César "was commander of the First Front of the FARC and in that position in charge of the production and distribution of cocaine to the United States," Colombia's Supreme Court stated in February when it ruled to allow his extradition.

Peru's former president Alberto Fujimori admitted at the opening of his corruption trial July 20 that he had paid his spy chief Vladimiro Montesinos $15 million in public funds to quit as his regime collapsed in 2000. But he added: "I only accept the facts, I do not accept the criminal responsibility, the punishment or the civil reparations."

Nine people were killed in explosions at the Ritz-Carlton and Marriott hotels in Jakarta July 17. Some of the victims were attending an Indonesian business forum held at the Marriott. Timothy Mackay, CEO of Holcim Indonesia, local unit of Swiss cement maker Holcim Ltd, was killed. Noke Kiroyan, a former chairman of Rio Tinto's Indonesian operations, was hospitalized. Also injured was James Castle, founder of forum host CastleAsia. No group claimed responsibility, but authorities suspect Jemaah Islamiyah, which attacked the Marriott in 2003. (Jakarta Globe, China Daily, WSJ, July 17)

Honduras' de facto President Roberto Micheletti told a report in Tegucigalpa July 15 that he is "willing to leave office if at some point that decision is needed to bring peace and tranquility to the country, but without, I stress, the return of former President Zelaya." The move comes as Zelaya supporters threatened to call widespread strikes to protest his ouster.

Tens of thousands have taken to the streets in Niger to protest President Mamadou Tandja's plan for a new constitution that would abolish term limits and give him more power after 10 years as president. Tandja has also dissolved a high court that ruled against his bid to remain in office, dismissed a fractious Parliament, shut down a critical radio and TV station, and arrested opposition leaders. Opposition leader Mohamadou Issoufou calls the plan "a coup d’état in its first phase." (NYT, July 13)

Police arrested 13 women in a raid on a cafe in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, and flogged 10 of them in public for wearing trousers. The women were detained July 10 by officers of the public order police, who enforce Sudan's strict Islamic law in public places. One of those arrested, Lubna Hussein, a journalist, said she is challenging the charges, which can be punishable by up to 40 lashes. "I didn't do anything wrong," she said. (AP, July 13)