Aristide says leaving South Africa, returning home

JOHANNESBURG, (Reuters) – Haiti’s exiled former  President Jean-Bertrand Aristide said he will be returning home  before Sunday’s presidential run-off election despite opposition  from the United States.
“The great day has arrived. The day to say goodbye before  returning home,” Aristide told a news conference in Johannesburg  late on Thursday, adding that he and his family “must leave  today”.
The United States has urged Aristide — in exile in South  Africa since he was ousted in 2004 — to delay his return until  after the run-off presidential election. The left-wing  populist’s party was barred from the ballot.