Honduran army blocks runway to keep Zelaya out

Ousted President Manuel Zelaya enters Honduran airspace but says his plane was unable to land in Tegucigalpa. His supporters gathered at the airport clash with police; one child is reported killed.

By Tracy Wilkinson and Alex Renderos
LA Times
5:31 PM PDT, July 5, 2009

Reporting from Tegucigalpa, Honduras — Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, ousted a week ago in a military coup, failed Sunday in his attempt to return home to reclaim power, with Honduras's de facto rulers placing army trucks on the airport runway to prevent his flight from landing.

Thousands of Zelaya's supporters, pressing towards the heavily guarded Tegucigalpa airport in hopes of greeting him, reacted furiously and clashed with soldiers and police who pushed them back.

Troops lined the airport landing strips and snipers manned the roof of the terminal, which was shut Sunday afternoon after most commercial flights were cancelled throughout the day. Protesters hurled rocks and debris over fences toward the police. Witnesses reported that a child was killed and several people wounded after security forces fired tear gas and what appeared to be live rounds at crowds attempting to enter the airport grounds. Military aircraft patrolled overhead.

As Zelaya's plane approached Honduran airspace, he went live on a Venezuelan television station, saying he couldn't land.

(More here.)