NOZAWA ONSEN, Japan — The Winter Olympics may put this hot springs and ski resort on the international sports map, but villagers here are up in arms over the idea of rifle-toting biathletes shooting up the hillsides. Japan's gun control laws — among the world's strictest — have presented officials with a host of difficulties for the biathlon, which combines rifle shooting and cross-country skiing. Mitsu Sato, head of the village's Olympic preparations, said two... (GunPolicy.org)

Roger Siblerud v. Sturm Ruger & Company, Inc. Court TV (US), 8 January 1998. Highlights: This civil suit out of Montana finds the father of a man who died during a gun accident suing the gun manufacturers for wrongful death and product liability. Roger Siblerud's son, Patrick, 25, died in 1993 after he dropped a Ruger revolver and it accidentally discharged after it hit the ground. Patrick Siblerud suffered a bullet wound to the abdomen and died hours later from... (GunPolicy.org)

Question: Should all New Zealand police officers carry arms on normal duty? Poll Result: Yes 25.8% No 69.8% Not Sure 4.4% New Zealanders have come out all guns blazing: police should not be armed. Seven out of 10 New Zealanders are against police carrying arms. Specially trained armed offenders squads may be fine, but the bobby on the beat should not be packing a pistol. Gun-toting police at the airport are acceptable, too, but the country seems unwilling to see... (GunPolicy.org)

Lawyers for Mayor Rendell have prepared an extraordinary lawsuit contending that the nation's gun industry has created a public nuisance by saturating Philadelphia with firearms used by criminals. If the mayor approves, this would mark the first time a government had sued the firearms trade, according to the National Center to Prevent Handgun Violence. The suit would demand that manufacturers pay millions of dollars to reimburse the city for costs stemming from guns... (GunPolicy.org)

BEIJING — China is urging its defence industry to join other ailing state sectors and promote layoffs amd mergers to cut losses within the next three years, the People's Daily said on Thursday … The arms industry, one of China's most troubled state-owned sectors, in 1997 saw six mergers of large- and medium-sized enterprises and laid off 90,000 redundant workers, finding new jobs for 74,000 of them, the newspaper said... (GunPolicy.org)