News In Brief

Air Force general named chief of Honduran forces

The Honduran Air Force chief, Gen. Walter Lopez Reyes, was appointed commander of the armed forces Wednesday, a day after his predecessor said General Lopez had ousted him.

Lopez received a 78-to-0 vote from the Honduran congress, with one abstention , to finish out the five-year term of Gen. Gustavo Alvarez Martinez, who was ousted in a sweeping military shake-up. Lopez, who has had extensive training in the United States, was the only general who survived the purge.

Honduras has told the US that joint military exercises designed to intimidate leftist movements in Central America will continue. Gen. Paul Gorman, head of the US Southern Command, who arrived in Honduras Wednesday, said he received the assurance from President Roberto Suazo Cordova.