Honduras: will Zelaya show up? UPDATE Zelaya lands in El Salvador; 2 dead

[darrels joy]

Honduras: will Zelaya show up? UPDATE Zelaya lands in El Salvador; 2 dead


UPDATE
Honduras’ Micheletti states that Nicaraguan troops are heading to the border with Honduras.
Zelaya’s plane landed in El Salvador
See 4:15PM update below.
A brief roundup of headlines:
Honduras will not allow the landing of any airplane that may be carrying Mel Zelaya back to the country.
While Zelaya was saying he was going back, in the company of OAS head Insulza, Argentinian president Cristina Fernandez, Chilean president Michelle Bachelet, and Ecuadorian president Rafael Correa, Bachelet’s staff already denied that allegation, Insulza already visited Honduras and left (but will he be going back?), Fernandez is not going, and Correa and Paraguay’s Fernando Lugo are meeting at the Ecuadorian embassy in Washington DC to decide whether to go or not. Across the Atlantic, Spain’s José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero offered to negotiate, but demanded Zelaya’s restoration to the presidency.
As if that weren’t enough foreign intervention, Nicaraguan president Daniel Ortega was predicting “a bloodbath” in Honduras. Here’s the Nicaraguan ambassador at the UN repeating that statement, which is what Chavez was saying the other day, but denies that Nicaragua, Cuba and Venezuela are supplying weapons to Zelaya sympathizers in Honduras (video in Spanish):


Last night the OAS suspended Honduras, even when Honduras had already left, or, as Richard put it,

They’re like the boss who won’t let you resign. They want to make a point of firing you.

Here at the US, the WaPo’s saying U.S. Misread Scale of Honduran Rift. That’s probably the understatement of the year, but the year is young. The article goes on,

The crisis also pits Obama’s nuanced approach to diplomacy against that of an often bellicose rival, Chávez, who has taken center stage in the showdown by threatening to overthrow the government that took over from Zelaya.

Zelaya’s airplane is scheduled to arrive in Honduras this afternoon.
1:45PM
The story gets even more “fluid”: Now Zelaya says he’s heading to Honduras with UN General Assembly head Miguel D’Escoto, while Fernandez, Correa and Lugo are heading to San Salvador.
4:15PM
Honduras’ Micheletti states that Nicaraguan troops are heading to the border with Honduras. Micheletti requested that Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega and Venezuela’s Hugo Chávez respect Hondura’s sovereignty and stop interfering in the country. Video in Spanish:

Michelettisedirigeahonduras
by noticias24
The Venezuelan plane carrying deposed president Mel Zelaya landed in El Salvador, according to Honduran daily El Heraldo. Venezuelan chancellor Nicolás Maduro verified that the airplane was Venezuelan and identified it as YV-1496.
Hugo Chávez is celebrating Venezuela’s Independence Day, July 5.
Welcome, Memeorandum readers.

5:40PM
Zelaya’s Plane Redirected to El Salvador; via Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion, Hunter Smith is reporting from the airport:

Protesters are being held about a quarter mile from airport. Army feel back, police just fell back and it appears they are letting the protesters to the airport. No violence so far. Protesters are self policing. One protester threw a rock and hit a policeman. Police did not respond and protesters pushed the young man back to the back of the crowd. They have been negotating with the police and appear to have gotten access to the airport after promising no violence.

6:55PM
Hunter, from the airport, reports that shots were fired. Noticias 24 confirms at least two dead, according to a police source talking to AFP, in a clash between demonstrators and the armed forces at the airport. Video from Chavez-owed TeleSur

Incidentes en Tegucigalpa
by noticias24

7:45PM BBC:

At least one person has been killed as Honduran troops try to disperse supporters of ousted President Manuel Zelaya at Tegucigalpa airport. Mr Zelaya’s plane has been circling above the capital after flying in from the US, while the interim authorities insist it will not be allowed to land. They are seeking to re-route the plane to El Salvador instead.

El Universal reports the plane was unable to land when military vehicles obstructed the runway. Zelaya vows to try again tomorrow or the day after. The Right Scoop has a very graphic photo and links to a twitter stating that Zelaya’s flight was diverted to Nicaragua. However, Noticias 24 says the plane was heading back to El Salvador.
More photos WARNING: GRAPHIC at Noticias 24.
Tags: Fausta's blog, Manuel Zelaya, Mel Zelaya, OAS

http://faustasblog.com/?p=13931

[darrels joy]

Zelaya to leave Honduras next week says adviser



TEGUCIGALPA (Reuters) - Ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya will end his four-month refuge in the Brazilian embassy and leave the country next week, when his term would have ended, his closest adviser said on Thursday.

World | Brazil

Zelaya, a leftist who was ousted in a coup on June 28, accepted an agreement backed by the government of the Dominican Republic to travel to the Caribbean country, close Zelaya aide Rasel Tome told Radio Globo radio.

Tome said Zelaya would remain politically active, but leaving the country effectively ends his career as a meaningful leader in Honduras.

"On January 27 there is a way out ... The exit will not be a permanent exit, we will come back to the country to continue in these processes with the Honduran people," Tome said.

Zelaya failed to return to office and reverse the coup despite support from the United States and many Latin American countries.

The agreement, signed by Honduras' President-elect Porfirio Lobo, stipulates Zelaya, his family members and his circle of advisers can enter the Dominican Republic after Lobo assumes power next Wednesday.

Lobo won a November election, which many nations denounced as illegitimate because it was organized by the de facto government that toppled Zelaya, who took refuge in the embassy in September.

Zelaya was ousted on an order from the Supreme Court after he angered the country's business leaders and members of his own party with a bid to change the constitution, which is illegal under Honduran law.

His critics accused him of trying to stay in office past his term, following in the footsteps of Venezuela's socialist President Hugo Chavez, a charge Zelaya denies.

(Reporting by Gustavo Palencia; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE60K58420100121