Post-election protests continue to rock Honduras

TEGUCIGALPA, Dec. 1 (Xinhua) -- Alleged angry supporters of Honduran opposition candidate Salvador Nasralla, who contests his razor-thin loss to the incumbent, continued to rampage in parts of the country on Friday.

The violence led Nasralla to take to the airwaves to say his supporters were protesting "peacefully," and that the rioters were infiltrators from the ruling National Party.

Protesters smashed bank windows and looted goods from stores in San Pedro Sula, while others threw up roadblocks to disrupt traffic in the capital Tegucigalpa.

Police were in the streets removing rocks and tires from roadways, but refrained from confronting protesters.

Disturbances on Thursday night led to reports that nine people were injured in Tegucigalpa, San Pedro Sula and La Ceiba, in the northern part of the country.

Also Thursday, the City Hall in the central town of Siguatepeque was partially destroyed by fire, as looters sacked electronics shops and supermarkets.

The offices of the daily La Prensa in San Pedro Sula were also vandalized.

So far, according to the country's Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE), the results from Sunday's presidential elections place Nasralla behind President Juan Orlando Hernandez, with 41.4 percent of the votes versus 42.9 percent.

The TSE on Friday began counting some 1,301 ballot boxes said to present irregularities, after which it is to issue the final results.

Nasrallah has accused the TSE of being under the influence of the government. Enditem