At least one person has been killed as Honduran troops try to disperse supporters of ousted President Manuel Zelaya at Tegucigalpa airport.

    Mr Zelaya's plane has been circling above the capital after flying in from the US, while the interim authorities insist it will not be allowed to land.

    They are seeking to re-route the plane to El Salvador instead.

    Regional leaders have backed Mr Zelaya's demand to return to office since his ouster just over a week ago.

    He has been issuing defiant messages from the air.

“ Today I feel like I have sufficient spiritual strength, blessed with the blood of Christ, to be able to arrive there [Honduras] and raise the crucifix ” - Manuel Zelaya ousted Honduran president

    "I am the commander of the armed forces, elected by the people, and I ask the armed forces to comply with the order to open the airport so that there is no problem in landing and embracing with my people," he was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency.

    "I have sufficient spiritual strength, blessed with the blood of Christ, to be able to arrive there and raise the crucifix."

    He is being accompanied on the plane by UN General Assembly President Miguel D'Escoto Brockmann and a number of journalists.

    The presidents of Argentina, Ecuador and Paraguay and the head of the Organization of American States (OAS) left Washington at the same time as Mr Zelaya, bound for El Salvador to monitor events.

    The Honduran interim government has accused troops from neighbouring Nicaragua of heading to the border but Nicaragua denies this.

    'Banned'

    Troops in riot gear fired tear gas at thousands of Zelaya supporters, some of whom reportedly hurled stones. Thousands managed to break through the security cordon.

    Hospital sources and police said at least one person had been killed and a number had been injured. An Associated Press photographer at the scene said a man had been shot in the head by gunfire from inside the airport as people tried to break through a security fence.

    News agency photos show two bodies in the crowd, both of which are said to be dead.

    The military - backed by Congress and the courts - forced Mr Zelaya out of Honduras on 28 June over his plans to hold a vote on possible constitutional change.

    Hours before Mr Zelaya's departure from the Washington, Honduras's interim foreign minister, Enrique Ortez, said the ousted president would not be allowed back in, "come what may".

    The removal of Mr Zelaya has been condemned by the international community.

    On Saturday the OAS suspended Honduras - the first time the organisation had taken such a measure since Cuba was suspended in 1962, when it allied itself with the USSR.

    As Mr Zelaya departed from Washington, the interim government said it had offered dialogue "in good faith" with the OAS. Honduras itself appears divided between supporters of the ousted leader and those who back the authorities that removed him.

    Both sides have protested in recent days, but the demonstrations have remained largely peaceful.

    His opponents, which includes the Supreme Court and a majority in parliament, accuse him of seeking to prolong his rule.

    He had wanted to hold a popular vote on convening a constitutional convention - a move that could have removed the current one-term limit for presidents.