Fearing Bloodshed, Zelaya Leaves Honduras

Ousted President Manuel Zelaya took a symbolic step into his homeland today, vowing to reclaim his post a month after soldiers flew him into exile. But he stayed less than 30 minutes before returning to Nicaragua, saying the risk of bloodshed was too great. He said he would give talks with the coup-installed government another try. "I am not afraid but I'm not crazy either," Zelaya told the Venezuela-based television network Telesur.

Shortly before Zelaya's crossing, his supporters clashed with soldiers and police nearby after the government ordered everyone off the streets along the 600-mile border with Nicaragua in a noon-to-dawn curfew. Police said one demonstrator was slightly injured. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton called Zelaya's trip "reckless." International leaders had urged Zelaya not to go home without an agreement out of fear it would lead to bloodshed. (More Nicaragua stories.)