May 18, 2006 (Thursday)
- Nepali legislators vote unanimously to strip the king (Currently Gyanendra) of his powers, effectively turning the Hindu kingdom into a secular constitutional monarchy. (CBC)
- Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase of Fiji swears in for a second term after winning the 2006 general election. (BBC)
- White House Press Secretary Tony Snow is unwilling to either confirm or deny U.S. financial and logistical support for the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism in Somalia. Previously, such accusations were denied. The current Prime Minister of Somalia, Ali Mohamed Gedi, criticized U.S. support for "criminals." (Philadelphia Inquirer)
- The European Parliament committee examining the claims of para-legal deportations of individuals for torture-based questioning, known as "extraordinary renditions", reports that it has CIA confirmation that between 30 and 50 individuals underwent such deportations to seven "black sites" in Asia, Europe and Africa. Those in Europe have reportedly been closed down following the public outcry, but there is still one such site operating in a North African country. (EU Observer) (UPI) (Reuters)
- New Italian prime minister Romano Prodi pledges to withdraw Italian troops from Iraq and calls the Iraq war a "grave mistake that has not solved but increased the problem of security". (Guardian) (Al Jazeera)
- Typhoon Chanchu, the strongest storm on record to have entered the South China Sea in May, makes landfall between the cities of Shantou, Guangdong and Xiamen, Fujian in China. (BBC) (Reuters)