Reporting from Tegucigalpa, Honduras, and Mexico City -- Ramping up pressure on Honduras' interim rulers, the Organization of American States threatened today to suspend the nation's membership if ousted President Jose Manuel Zelaya is not returned to power within 72 hours.
The move prompted Zelaya to announce he would delay plans to return to Honduras until the weekend. Zelaya, deposed by the Honduran army on Sunday in a coup that has drawn broad international condemnation, had said earlier he would go back Thursday, accompanied by other regional leaders.
The OAS resolution, issued in the early-morning hours after an emergency session in Washington, condemned the coup and said the group would only recognize Zelaya and his representatives as the legitimate government of Honduras.
The move came after the U.N. General Assembly called for Zelaya to be reinstated without conditions and Central American neighbors suspended trade with Honduras.
President Obama has labeled the coup "not legal" and said Zelaya remains president, but the United States has not withdrawn its ambassador in Honduras or cut off aid to the impoverished nation.
The OAS ultimatum gave 72 hours for diplomatic efforts by the hemispheric group and regional officials "to restore democracy and the rule of law" in Honduras. It was not immediately clear who would take part in such efforts or how a breakthrough could be achieved.
Members of the de facto government, appointed after soldiers arrested Zelaya and sent him into exile in Costa Rica following months of political friction, have been defiant in refusing to give way. The new leaders have threatened to arrest Zelaya as soon as he sets foot in Honduras.
Roberto Micheletti, a former head of Congress chosen as the new president, said Zelaya "broke laws" and faced prosecution. The country's attorney general, Luis Alberto Rubi, said Tuesday that Zelaya was the subject of warrants for 18 crimes, including treason and abuse of authority.
Zelaya was traveling to Panama today Wed to attend the inauguration of the president-elect, Ricardo Martinelli, Reuters reported, quoting a U.S. official.
The dueling claims to power have left Honduran society divided. Demonstrators on both sides have held competing gatherings this week in the nation's capital, Tegucigalpa, and the city of San Pedro Sula, though without any widespread violence.
