Ousted president, gov't sign pact in Honduras

Honduras' de facto government buckled under international pressure and agreed to allow the return to power of President Manuel Zelaya, who was toppled in a military coup four months ago.The breakthrough followed renewed pressure from senior U.S. officials who traveled to Honduras this week for a last-ditch effort to end a crisis that had handed President Barack Obama a foreign policy headache. Zelaya, a leftist, was toppled and sent into exile on June 28 but crept back into Honduras last month and has since been holed up in the Brazilian embassy.De facto leader Roberto Micheletti, who took over the country within hours of Zelaya's ouster, had repeatedly refused to agree for his return but finally backed down.Micheletti said the deal would require both sides to recognize the result of a Nov. 29 presidential election and would transfer control of the army to the top electoral court.The United States, the European Union and Latin American leaders had all insisted that Zelaya be allowed to finish his presidential term, which ends in January. They had said they might not recognize the winner of the November election unless democracy was first restored.