Managua  - Nicaragua's capital Managua and 104 other cities and counties will be ruled by Sandinistas, according to official final election results in the disputed local elections held November 9.<

Managua  - Supporters of the Sandinista Front that leads Nicaragua took to the streets of the capital Managua on Tuesday to "defend the vote" from the recent municipal election.

They gathered in front of the headquarters of the Supreme Electoral Council (CSE) three hours before the start of a "rally against fraud" that had been called by the right-wing candidate to the position of mayor of Managua, Eduardo Montealegre.

Managua, Nicaragua - Nicaragua's capital was bracing for large demonstrations Tuesday by the ruling Sandinista party and the opposition after supporters of President Daniel Ortega blocked an important highway through Managua, forcing opposition leaders to seek refuge in a church.

The supporters of the Sandinista National Liberation Front cut off the Pan-American Highway and important streets in the capital Monday to block the movements of Eduardo Montealegre, who ran for mayor of Managua in November 9 elections and is now charging electoral fraud.

The member of the Liberal Constitutionalist Party and other opposition leaders then had to hole up in the church.

Managua

Tegucigalpa, Honduras - Flooding from heavy rains killed at least three people and four others were reported missing as civil defence officials issued a red alert along the Ulua River basin stretching across northern Honduras.

Two people died in flooding of the Guayape River in the eastern department of Olancho, and one victim was reported in the capital, Tegucigalpa, after a collapsed wall buried a house.

Two people were reported missing in Olancho and two others in the southern department of Choluteca bordering Nicaragua.

Managua - At least 10 people died in heavy rains in the past 48 hours in Nicaragua, which also caused serious damage to housing and infrastructure in the Central American country, civil defence authorities said Friday in Managua.

Many rivers overflowed, and there were mudslides particularly in northern Nicaragua.

More than 2,500 people had to be lodged in emergency shelters, although rescue teams had not finished evacuating all those in need in flooded areas, so the figures were expected to rise further.