HONDURAS: Ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya has arrived in Nicaragua, following his removal from office Sunday by Honduran soldiers.
The military detained Mr. Zelaya and sent him to Costa Rica in the
early-morning hours Sunday -- the day he set for a referendum on
changing the constitution to allow him to run for another term. Mr. Zelaya arrived in Nicaragua from Costa Rica late Sunday for a scheduled meeting of Latin American presidents Monday.
The man Honduran lawmakers have appointed as acting president after the
ouster of Mr. Zelaya says his rise to the office was a legal transition
process.
IRAN: Iran says it has released five Iranian staffers of the British Embassy in Tehran, days after they were detained for alleged links to the nation's post-election unrest. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hassan Qashqavi told a news conference Monday that five of nine arrested were freed, and the remainder are being held for questioning. Earlier reports said eight British Embassy workers had been arrested. British Foreign Secretary David Miliband and European Union foreign ministers have demanded that all the staffers be released, calling their detention an unacceptable form of harassment and intimidation.
ARGENTINA-ELECTIONS: Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner's ruling Peronist Party was dealt a serious blow in Sunday's mid-term election with its loss of control of Congress. Her husband, former President Nestor Kirchner, was defeated in his race against wealthy businessman Francisco de Narvaez for a seat representing the populous Buenos Aires province. Voters cast ballots Sunday for representatives for half of the lower house of Congress and one-third of the Senate posts. Complete results have yet to be announced. Allies of President Fernandez have controlled the Argentinian Congress for six years
US-NOKOR: The U.S. envoy to the United Nations says sanctions against North Korea will have an impact once they are implemented. Ambassador Susan Rice said in a television interview Sunday with CBS (program Face the Nation) that the combination of financial sanctions, an arms embargo and the freezing of North Korea's foreign assets will be a "very tough package." Rice would not comment on plans by the United States or its allies regarding a North Korean ship that is suspected of carrying missiles or other banned materials. The ambassador said only that the United States is "pursuing and closely following the progress of that ship very closely."
BURMA_SUU KYI: Burma's highest court on Monday rejected an appeal to reinstate two defense witnesses at the trial of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. The High Court upheld a lower court ruling to bar two of four defense witnesses in her ongoing trial. Aung San Suu Kyi is on trial in Rangoon for allegedly violating her house arrest by letting American John Yettaw stay with her for two nights after he swam to her home uninvited last month. The international community has denounced the trial as a sham and demanded her release. International right groups accuse Burma's military government of using the trial as a pretext to keep her in detention through next year's elections.
