Manuel Zelaya, the ousted president of Honduras, made a surprise return to the country on Monday under the noses of the coup leaders who deposed him almost three months ago.

Officials at the Brazilian embassy in the Honduran capital, Tegucigalpa, confirmed that Mr Zelaya and a small group of followers were in the building. In a television interview from the embassy, the ousted leader said he had returned to seek dialogue with the de facto regime, which had threatened to arrest him if he ever came back.