Soldiers ousted the democratically elected president of Honduras yesterday and Congress named a successor, but the leftist ally of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez denounced what he called an illegal coup and vowed to stay in power.

MEXICO and four Central American nations have condemned a US plan to build hundreds of miles of triple-layered fencing on its southern border, saying it would not stop illegal immigration.

A bloody clash between rival groups inside Honduras’ biggest prison has left 13 inmates dead and one severely wounded, in the latest violence to hit the country’s overcrowded and ageing jails, authorities said today.

At least 13 inmates were killed and another 30 wounded in a shootout between rival groups inside Honduras’ biggest prison, the latest bloodshed to hit the country’s overcrowded and ageing jails.