TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras - Honduras' ousted president won overwhelming international support yesterday as he planned a high-profile return to his chaotic country.

The politicians who sent soldiers to fly him into exile say he will be arrested for treason if he arrives.

The showdown was building to a climax as world leaders - fearful of a return to the dark days of coups and dictatorships in the region - signed on to accompany President Manuel Zelaya on a flight to Honduras tomorrow.

The U.N. General Assembly, voting by acclamation, demanded Zelaya's immediate restoration, and the Organization of American States was meeting late yesterday to consider suspending the new Honduran regime for straying from democracy.

The U.N. resolution "expresses the indignation of the people of Honduras and of people worldwide," a triumphant Zelaya told the assembly in New York. "This resolution is historic."

With no international support - but with a significant following at home - the new Honduran leadership called thousands of flag-waving people into the streets.

Soldiers fenced off the area around the presidential residence, where security forces used tear gas and water cannons Monday against Zelaya supporters, injuring and arresting dozens.

The interim president named by Congress, Roberto Micheletti, said Zelaya could be arrested for violating the constitution if he returned.

On Sunday, when he was arrested and flown to Costa Rica, Zelaya had defied the Supreme Court and insisted on holding a referendum on constitutional change that opponents worried would lead to removal of a presidential one-term limit and a Venezuela-style socialist state.

"I'm going to try to open a dialogue and put things in order," Zelaya said at the United Nations. He said he would no longer push for the constitutional changes he wanted and not serve any more than his one four-year term.

Micheletti yesterday said it was he who would serve out Zelaya's term until it ends in January.

"We're heading toward the elections in November," Micheletti told 5,000 cheering supporters in white and blue, the colors of the Honduran flag. "We will hand over the presidential sash to whomever the people choose."

Attorney General Luis Alberto Rubi said Zelaya would be arrested "as soon as he sets foot on Honduran soil" and faces at least 20 years in prison for treason, abuse of authority and other charges.

Micheletti's foreign minister, Enrique Ortez, threw a wild card onto the table, telling CNN en Espanol that Zelaya had been letting drug traffickers ship U.S.-bound cocaine from Venezuela through Honduras.

Ortez said the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration was aware of Zelaya's ties to organized crime.

Spokesman Rusty Payne could neither confirm or deny a DEA investigation.

The United States stood firmly by Zelaya, however, with State Department spokesman Ian Kelly saying Washington sees no acceptable solution other than Zelaya's return to power.

Zelaya vowed to return to Honduras tomorrow, escorted by the presidents of Argentina, Ecuador and the U.N. General Assembly, as well as the head of the OAS.

He said he wanted to serve out his term, then go back to being a farmer - a humble description considering the wealth he has accumulated in ranching and agribusiness.

Mexico and Colombia's conservative governments joined the region's leftist leaders in condemning Zelaya's removal. Blocked trucks began lining up along Honduras' borders as neighboring countries imposed a trade ban.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, Zelaya's top ally, urged a rebellion by Hondurans, and vowed to halt shipments of subsidized oil, though Honduras gets most of its oil from other sources.

The U.S. military, which has close ties to Honduran commanders, tried to avoid getting caught up in the dispute.

It ordered most of its 800 personnel to remain inside the Soto Cano air base, 60 miles north of Tegucigalpa, allowing only "mission-essential" tasks, Southern Command spokesman Jose Ruiz said in Miami.