Trump says pardoning Honduras ex-president days before vote

Palm Beach (United States) (AFP) - U.S. President Donald Trump made a major intervention in Honduran politics on Friday just days before the country's presidential election, by pardoning a convicted former leader and threatening to cut U.S. support if his preferred candidate loses. Trump announced he would pardon former President Juan Orlando Hernandez, who was convicted last year by a U.S. court on drug trafficking charges and sentenced to 45 years in prison. Hernandez, who led the Central American nation from 2014 to 2022, was accused by U.S. prosecutors of facilitating the importation of about 400 tons of cocaine into the United States. He was extradited to the U.S. a few weeks after leaving office, when current president, leftist Xiomara Castro, came to power. Trump's surprising announcement came in a social media post proclaiming his support for Nasry Asfura, Hernandez's right-wing party candidate in the Honduran presidential election on Sunday. The U.S. president had previously backed Asfura, but his latest comments went further, apparently conditioning future aid to Honduras on his victory. "If he doesn't win, the United States will not throw money after bad decisions, as a bad leader can only bring catastrophic results to a country, no matter which one," Trump said on his Truth Social platform. Trump had made a similar threat before the election in Argentina last month. Asfura, reached by AFP by phone, denied any ties to Hernandez but celebrated Trump's renewed support. Hernandez "was president of the Republic, the party is not responsible for his personal actions," Asfura said. Three-way race Asfura, a 67-year-old construction magnate and former mayor of the Honduran capital, is running in a tight three-way race against leftist lawyer Rixi Moncada and right-wing television host Salvador Nasralla. Trump accused Nasralla, 72, on Friday of running as a spoiler candidate to siphon votes away from Asfura. Noting that Nasralla was Castro's vice president before resigning, Trump said he "now pretends to be an anti-communist solely to divide Asfura's vote." Trump also criticized Moncada, Castro's political heir, as a "communist" and stated that her victory would be a win for Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro "and his narcoterrorists." The pardon of Hernandez comes despite a major U.S. operation in Latin America, which Washington says aims to stop drug trafficking, during which more than 80 people were killed in strikes in international waters. A jury in New York convicted Hernandez in March 2024 of facilitating the trafficking of hundreds of tons of cocaine - primarily from Colombia and Venezuela - into the United States via Honduras since 2004, long before he became president. Former U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland stated after Hernandez's conviction last year that he had "abused his power to support one of the largest and most violent drug trafficking conspiracies in the world." Trump stated in his social media post on Friday that Hernandez "has been, according to many people I respect greatly, treated very harshly and unfairly," without providing further details.