Ousted president Zelaya returns to Honduras, takes refuge in Brazilian embassy
Followers of deposed Honduran President Manuel Zelaya march in Tegucigalpa on Sept. 18, 2009. Zelaya said Monday he has returned to Honduras almost three months after he was toppled in a coup.
Photograph by: Orlando Sierra, AFP/Getty Images
TEGUCIGALPA - Ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya has taken refuge inside the Brazilian embassy in the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa, Telesur television network reported Monday.
Zelaya had announced Monday he returned to Honduras almost three months after he was toppled in a coup, despite warnings he would be arrested.
The U.S. State Department confirmed that Zelaya, an ally of Venezuela's socialist President Hugo Chavez, was back in Honduras but the Central American country's de facto ruler denied Zelaya had returned.
"I am here in Tegucigalpa. I am here for the restoration of democracy, to call for dialogue." Zelaya told Honduras' Canal 36 television network.
Between 3,000 and 4,000 Zelaya supporters gathered outside the main UN building in the capital shouting "Yes, we did it!" after a senior Zelaya aide said the president was holed up there.
In interviews with left-wing radio and TV stations, Zelaya himself refused to say exactly where he was and the United Nations denied he was in its building in Tegucigalpa.
Zelaya's ouster on June 28 plunged Honduras into its worst political crisis in decades, and was criticized by U.S. President Barack Obama, the European Union and Latin American governments.
Soldiers toppled Zelaya and sent him into exile after he upset conservative opponents, who accused him of wanting to change the constitution to allow presidents to seek re-election.
Honduras' de facto rulers, led by Roberto Micheletti, have vowed to arrest Zelaya if he comes home.
The United States confirmed Zelaya was back in Honduras, one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere and a staunch U.S. ally during Cold War conflicts in Central America.
"We have confirmed that he is in Honduras. Where exactly he is, I don't know," said State Department spokesman Ian Kelly.
"At this point, all I can say is reiterate our almost daily call on both sides to exercise restraint and refrain from . . . any activities that could provoke violence."
Micheletti, a bitter rival of Zelaya who has run Honduras since the coup, denied that the president had returned and called on the population to remain calm.
"It's not true. He is in a suite in a hotel in Nicaragua," Micheletti told reporters. He accused Zelaya and his supporters of "media terrorism."
Honduras is a major coffee producer but exports have not been affected by the crisis.
Zelaya had announced Monday he returned to Honduras almost three months after he was toppled in a coup, despite warnings he would be arrested.
The U.S. State Department confirmed that Zelaya, an ally of Venezuela's socialist President Hugo Chavez, was back in Honduras but the Central American country's de facto ruler denied Zelaya had returned.
"I am here in Tegucigalpa. I am here for the restoration of democracy, to call for dialogue." Zelaya told Honduras' Canal 36 television network.
Between 3,000 and 4,000 Zelaya supporters gathered outside the main UN building in the capital shouting "Yes, we did it!" after a senior Zelaya aide said the president was holed up there.
In interviews with left-wing radio and TV stations, Zelaya himself refused to say exactly where he was and the United Nations denied he was in its building in Tegucigalpa.
Zelaya's ouster on June 28 plunged Honduras into its worst political crisis in decades, and was criticized by U.S. President Barack Obama, the European Union and Latin American governments.
Soldiers toppled Zelaya and sent him into exile after he upset conservative opponents, who accused him of wanting to change the constitution to allow presidents to seek re-election.
Honduras' de facto rulers, led by Roberto Micheletti, have vowed to arrest Zelaya if he comes home.
The United States confirmed Zelaya was back in Honduras, one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere and a staunch U.S. ally during Cold War conflicts in Central America.
"We have confirmed that he is in Honduras. Where exactly he is, I don't know," said State Department spokesman Ian Kelly.
"At this point, all I can say is reiterate our almost daily call on both sides to exercise restraint and refrain from . . . any activities that could provoke violence."
Micheletti, a bitter rival of Zelaya who has run Honduras since the coup, denied that the president had returned and called on the population to remain calm.
"It's not true. He is in a suite in a hotel in Nicaragua," Micheletti told reporters. He accused Zelaya and his supporters of "media terrorism."
Honduras is a major coffee producer but exports have not been affected by the crisis.
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