 Day
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Honduras' Zelaya
Says He Faces Assassination
Tegucigalpa - Honduras'
ousted President Manuel Zelaya said on
Tuesday that he has the risk of being
assassinated by coup leader upon his return.
Zelaya, who was whisked out of Honduras
during a military coup on June 28, accused
Romeo Vasquez Velasquez, head of Honduras'
armed forces, of plotting a murder against
him.
Romeo Vasquez said after the coup that
Zelaya was exiled to avoid "deaths and
injuries," noting that arresting Zelaya
"could have caused deaths and injuries" if
his supporters had tried to free him.
"I believe they have the intention to do it.
They are hiring armed groups. He (Vasquez)
has clearly said that he will have me killed
before my return or after I enter Honduras,"
Honduras' Radio Globo reported, quoting
Zelaya who was forced into exile in
Nicaragua.
Rejecting reconciliation with Zelaya, the
interim government leader Roberto Micheletti
had threatened to arrest the deposed
president once he set foot on the Honduran
soil.
"If Romeo does not kill me, I will go to my
town to visit my family, and any direct harm
will be the responsibility of General
Romeo," said Zelaya.
Zelaya has said he will return to Honduras
within a few days if Costa Rican President
Oscar Arias fails to help reach an agreement
between the rival sides.
Zelaya's previous attempt to fly home on
July 5 in a Venezuelan aircraft was thwarted
by Honduran troops, who blocked the runways
in Tegucigalpa, capital of the Central
American nation.
"They would dare to do that ... to place a
sniper and say that the rebel groups did it.
We foresee all these possible consequences,"
Zelaya said.
Zelaya repeated his plan to return to
Honduras but did not give a specific date or
itinerary.
A new round of negotiations aiming to solve
the Honduras crisis ended in a stalemate
Sunday as both sides failed to reach
agreement on Zelaya's return, a key issue of
any compromise plan.
Both sides agreed to resume talks on
Wednesday.
In Honduras, most people are waiting
earnestly for the result of the negotiations
as fears of the country's possible return to
its war-plagued past spread and the
political crisis' impact on the economy
becomes evident.
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