Tokyo (AsiaNews) – By the end of this month, Japan will send up to 700 troops to Iraq and nearby regions to "help rebuild the country destroyed after the war." A group of 600 soldiers will be stationed in Samawah, in southern Iraq, in an area the Japanese government defines a "non-combat zone".

Their task includes the offering of health services and restoring public buildings in addition to guaranteeing provisions of water. Japanese air force soldiers will shuttle back and forth between Kuwait and Baghdad as well as Basra, Mosul and Balad in order to guarantee delivery of goods and machinery; the navy will be in charge of transporting vehicles.    

The decision was the cause for much debate and division within public opinion. According to some inquiries, most are against prime minister Junichiro Koizumi's decision, as the country's constitution prohibits Japan's intervention in war zones.

Last November, Japanese public opinion was shaken by the news of two fellow citizens killed in a guerrilla attack in Tikrit.

Koizumi repeatedly said that "Japan is not going to war." The troops that are sent, even if armed, have the right to use their weapons only if attacked first.

In 1992, Japan passed a law permitting the country to send troops abroad to contribute to peacekeeping operations in non-war zones. To date, Tokyo has sent troops to Cambodia and East Timor.

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