Sunday, March 03, 2024

Haitian police unions plead for help after attack on main prison

Reuters
Sat, March 2, 2024 

 People demonstrate against the government and insecurity in Port-au-Prince

PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) - Armed groups were closing in on Haiti's largest prison on Saturday night, defying police forces who called for help after days of gunfire in parts of the capital as a major gang leader seeks to topple Prime Minister Ariel Henry.

Two of the Caribbean country's main police unions called for assistance to stop inmates, many considered to be high-profile criminals, from fleeing the National Penitentiary in Port-Au-Prince.

It was unclear how many had fled the prison, a number that newspaper Gazette Haiti said was "significant." Some detainees were reluctant to leave en masse for fear of being killed in crossfire, sources told Reuters.


Police officers assigned to the prison had vacated the premises on Saturday, according to reports by local media AyiboPost.

The government of Haiti, the poorest country in the Americas, did not comment on the situation on Saturday.

Heavy gunfire has caused panic in recent days after calls by gang leader Jimmy Cherizier, a former police officer, for criminal groups to unite and overthrow Henry. Cherizier, also known as Barbecue, heads an alliance of gangs and faces sanctions from the U.N. and the U.S.

The penitentiary, built to hold 700 prisoners, held 3,687 as of February last year, according to rights group RNDDH. A 2017 report by the group warned of serious overcrowding at the prison, which is said to suffer from poor police staffing.

The prison attack follows reports on Friday that armed men had attempted to take control of the capital's main container port, causing traffic disruptions, and gangs threatened to attack more of the city's police stations.

Cherizier this week warned locals to keep children from going to school to "avoid collateral damages" as violence surged.

Prime Minister Henry, who came to power after the assassination of the country's last president, Jovenel Moise, in 2021, had previously pledged to step down by early February. He later said security must first be re-established in order to ensure free and fair elections.

(Reporting by Harold Isaac; Writing by Lucinda Elliott; Editing by William Mallard)


Police in Haiti struggle against gangs storming prison in latest surge of violence

EVENS SANON
Sat, March 2, 2024 
14






Haiti Violence
Police take cover during an anti-gang operation in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, March 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)


PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Police in Haiti urgently appealed for help Saturday night as they struggled to hold back gangs trying to storm the country's main prison in a major escalation of violence sweeping the troubled Caribbean nation.

“They need help,” a union representing Haitian police said in a message posted on social media bearing an “SOS” emoji repeated eight times. “Let's mobilize the army and the police to prevent the bandits from breaking into the prison.”

A police officer told The Associated Press that the gangs had overwhelmed security forces but were not yet in control of the prison, where several gang leaders were being held. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

The armed clashes follow a string of violent protests that have been building for some time but turned deadlier in recent days as Prime Minister Ariel Henry went to Kenya to salvage a proposed security mission in Haiti to be led by that East African country and backed by the United Nations.

Henry took over as prime minister following the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise and has repeatedly postponed plans to hold parliamentary and presidential elections, which haven't taken place in almost a decade.

As part of coordinated attacks by gangs, four police officers were killed Thursday in the capital when gunmen opened fire on targets including Haiti's international airport. Gang members also seized control of two police stations, prompting civilians to flee in fear and forcing businesses and schools to close.

The penitentiary targeted by gangs is notorious for its extremely crowded and unhygienic conditions. Among its high-profile inmates are several gang leaders and 18 former Colombian soldiers accused in Moïse’s killing.

As a result of the violence at the airport, the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince said it was temporarily halting all official travel to Haiti.

Haiti’s National Police has roughly 9,000 officers to provide security for more than 11 million people, according to the U.N. The officers are routinely overwhelmed and outgunned by powerful gangs, which are estimated to control up to 80% of Port-au-Prince.

Jimmy Chérizier, a former elite police officer known as Barbecue who now runs a gang federation, claimed responsibility for the surge in attacks. He said the goal was to capture Haiti’s police chief and government ministers and prevent Henry's return.

The prime minister, a neurosurgeon, has shrugged off calls for his resignation and didn't comment when asked if he felt it was safe to return home.

He signed reciprocal agreements Friday with Kenyan President William Ruto to try and salvage the plan to deploy Kenyan police to Haiti. Kenya’s High Court had ruled in January that the proposed deployment was unconstitutional, in part because the original deal lacked reciprocal agreements between the two countries.

The violence has complicated efforts to stabilize Haiti and pave the way for elections. Caribbean leaders said Wednesday that Henry had agreed to schedule a vote by mid-2025 — a far-off date likely to further enrage Henry's opponents.


Armed gangs attack main prison in Haiti, releasing inmates

Jacqueline Charles
Sat, March 2, 2024


Armed gangs attacked Haiti’s National Penitentiary on Saturday, allowing several notorious gang leaders and other prisoners to escape the vastly overcrowded facility, a high-level police source confirmed.

The prison houses some of the country’s highest-profile inmates — including indicted suspects in the July 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse.

The break occurred after gangs had besieged the Port-au-Prince prison for days.

The siege unfolded while Prime Minister Ariel Henry was visiting Kenya. He is in the East African nation to finalize an agreement for the deployment of a United Nations-backed Multinational Security Support mission to help the Haiti National Police combat gang violence that has destabilized the country.

In his absence, terrorizing gangs launched an attack on the capital that led to the deaths of at least five police officers when they overtook a police station, and the cancellation of international flights. After shots were fired near the domestic and international airports on Thursday, both U.S.-based carriers, American Airlines and Spirit Airlines, canceled flights from South Florida while Haiti-based Sunrise Airways also canceled flights after bullets struck several of its airplanes. International flights resumed Friday.

As gangs continued their attack on Friday, however, the U.S. embassy issued a security alert to warn U.S. citizens that multiple locations in the capital were under heavy gunfire from violent gangs and that civilians should take precautions.

The attacks mark an escalation of already dangerous levels of violence in Haiti, where over 314,000 people have been forced from their homes and the toll is expected to rise with the latest wave of unrest.

READ MORE: Gang attacks at Haiti airport damage jetliners; airlines cancel flights from South Florida

The National Penitentiary in downtown Port-au-Prince is Haiti’s most overcrowded prison. It was designed for 3,900 inmates, but as of early January held 11, 778 inmates. They include 18 Colombians accused in the assassination plot against Moïse, as well as the late president’s palace security chief, Dimitri Hérard, and security coordinator, Jean Laguel Civil. All were recently indicted by a Haitian investigative judge in the killing.
Gangs using drones

Earlier Saturday, a video circulated online with an image of the prison from a drone reportedly being operated by the leader of the Baz 5 Segon gang, Izo. A voice could be heard monitoring the penitentiary and reporting on the lack of police presence in the prison yard and informing gang members they could progress. In another recording, an unidentified voice could be heard confirming the prison break.

Izo also shared a drone video on TikTok from on top of an office building in the palace yard. Specialized police officers from the National Palace’s security unit could be seen lying flat on the roof as a voice mocked them and said “keep shooting at them.”

A Haiti National Police spokesman did not respond to a Miami Herald request for comment, and the high-level police source did not provide additional details.

In separate social media posts on X, formerly Twitter, two Haitian police unions launched a SOS, asking for police officers to unite to protect the prisons and strategic intersections, such as the road leading to the international airport.

Gang members, who now appear to be more coordinated and united than ever, had been trying for months to breach the country’s main prison. Unsuccessful attempts on both the prison and National Palace were reported on Friday as automatic gunfire rang out across the capital and armed gangs continued to target police officers and government facilities.

Earlier in the week, former policeman-turned-gang member Jimmy Chérizier, aka Barbecue, took credit for the latest wave of violence, saying in a video shared online that the goal is to “topple” Henry and his government.


Violence surges as Haiti gang leader aims to unseat PM

Reuters Videos
Updated Sat, March 2, 2024 



STORY: Chaos and violence surged in Haiti’s capital on Friday (March 1).

Heavy gunfire rang out in Port-au-Prince, after a Haitian gang leader Jimmy Cherizier, known as Barbecue, warned he would try to oust Prime Minister Ariel Henry.

Bodies of slain victims lay on streets. It was unclear how many have died so far.

There were unverified reports of armed men trying to take control of the capital’s main container port.

The gangs also reportedly threatened to attack more police stations.

Reuters was unable to independently confirm these claims.

Assault rifle in hand, Cherizier addressed the island's law enforcement:

""We ask the Haitian National Police and the military to take responsibility and arrest Ariel Henry. Once again, the population is not our enemy; the armed groups are not your enemy. You arrest Ariel Henry for the country's liberation."

In a statement, Prime Minister Henry’s office said it was "outraged by the acts of violence and terror orchestrated by armed bandits."

The fresh attacks ramped up during Henry's visit to Kenya this week – where he reached a security deal with Nairobi removing legal obstacles that stop the sending of Kenyan police officers to Haiti, to tackle gang violence in a U.N.-approved mission.

Haitian gangs have grown in strength in the power vacuum since the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise, Henry’s predecessor.

At a recent Caribbean summit, Henry told leaders he would hold elections by 2025, after postponing an earlier pledge due to the insecurity.

Haitian gang leader vows to 'fight' prime minister, violence surges

Reuters
Updated Fri, March 1, 2024 





 People demonstrate against the government and insecurity in Port-au-Prince

PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) - Haitian gang leader Jimmy Cherizier, also known as Barbecue, warned on Friday he would keep trying to oust Prime Minister Ariel Henry, and asked families to keep children from going to school to "avoid collateral damages" as violence surges in parts of the capital.

Heavy gunfire and traffic disruptions were seen in some areas of Haiti's capital, where more people fled homes close to the fighting as burnt buses lay on the streets and burning barricades filled the air with thick, gray smoke.

"The battle will last as long as it needs to. We will keep fighting Ariel Henry. To avoid collateral damage, keep the kids at home," the gang leader said at a press conference.

Cherizier is a former police officer who heads an alliance of gangs and disrupted the country when he blocked its biggest oil terminal in 2022. He has faced sanctions from both the United Nations and the United States Department of Treasury.

By late Friday, there were reports armed men had attempted to take control of the capital's main container port, as gangs threatened to attack more of the city's police stations. Reuters was unable to immediately verify these reports.

A video, meanwhile, went viral on social media appearing to show two murdered policemen, which SYNAPOHA police union leader Lionel Lazare told Reuters depicted the killing of some of the four officers who were slain on Thursday.

Members of another police union, the SPNH, gathered outside the force headquarters earlier in the day calling for the recovery of the bodies.

In a statement, Prime Minister Henry's office said it was "outraged by the acts of violence and terror orchestrated by armed bandits," and expressed condolences to victims' families, saying the government would continue to work to resolve the conflict.

Violence ramped up during Henry's visit to Kenya this week. The two countries signed earlier in the day a security deal that Nairobi hopes will satisfy a domestic court's objections to its plan to send 1,000 police officers to lead a U.N.-approved mission aimed at tackling gang violence in Haiti.

Henry had previously been in Guyana for a regional Caribbean summit, during which he told leaders he would hold elections by August 2025, after postponing an earlier pledge due to the insecurity.

Henry came to power after the 2021 assassination of the country's last president. Haiti last held elections in 2016 and ensuring a transition of power is a goal of the international mission alongside securing routes for humanitarian aid.

The United Nations estimates some 300,000 people in Haiti have fled their homes.

(Reporting by Harold Isaac, Steven Aristil and Ralph Tedy Erol; Writing by Sarah Morland; Editing by Brendan O'Boyle and Himani Sarkar)
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Haiti gangs vow to oust PM as they unleash gunfight in capital

Our Foreign Staff
Fri, March 1, 2024 

People drive past a burning road blockade as protesters call for the prime minister to resign - Ralph Tedy Erol

Gun battles broke out in Haiti’s capital on Thursday, leaving four police officers dead, as a gang leader launched attacks aimed at ousting the country’s prime minister.

Shots were heard across Port-au-Prince as authorities fought gunmen who had targeted police stations, as well as a police academy and the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in a coordinated assault.

Gang leader Jimmy Cherisier, known by the nickname Barbecue, said in a social media video before the attacks began: “Today, we announce that all armed groups are going to act to get prime minister Ariel Henry to step down.”

“We will use all strategies to achieve this goal,” he said. “We claim responsibility for everything that’s happening in the streets right now.”

Armed gangs have taken control of vast swaths of Haiti in recent years, including most of the capital, unleashing violence that has left the country’s economy and public health system in tatters.

At the same time, the Caribbean nation has also been engulfed in widespread civil and political unrest, with thousands taking to the streets in recent weeks to demand the prime minister step down after he refused to do so as scheduled.

Police take cover as they try to control gangs who forced businesses, agencies and schools to close earlier in Port-au-Prince 
- Odelyn Joseph/AP

Under a political deal concluded after the assassination of president Jovenel Moïse in 2021, Haiti was supposed to hold elections and Mr Henry cede power to newly elected officials by Feb 7 2024, but that hasn’t happened.

Thursday’s attacks came as the prime minister was on a visit to Kenya, which is moving to head up a multinational mission greenlit by the UN Security Council to help the Haitian police wrest back control of the country.

Special police units were deployed throughout Port-au-Prince and national police trade union Synapoha said four officers had been killed, including a chief inspector.

Schools, universities and businesses in Haiti meanwhile halted their activities.

Multiple airlines cancelled domestic and international flights after aircraft and an airport terminal came under fire.
‘No political solution’

Antonio Guterres, the UN secretary general, called for the restoration of order and a long-term solution for years of political turmoil in Haiti, the poorest country in the Western hemisphere.

“You can put as many police forces as possible in Haiti [but] if there is no political solution, the problem will not be solved,” he said in the Caribbean nation of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines ahead of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States summit.

Mr Henry had on Wednesday agreed to “share power” with the opposition until fresh elections are held, though a date for the vote has not been set.

Five countries have said they are willing to join the Kenya-led multinational policing mission, including the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin and Chad.

The UN estimates the violence in Haiti killed almost 5,000 people in 2023 and has driven some 300,000 from their homes, while the fighting has blocked off access to food and medical services.

Kenya, Haiti sign 'reciprocal' accord on police deployment

Hillary ORINDE
Fri, March 1, 2024 

Kenya has said it is ready to provide up to 1,000 personnel to a UN-backed law and order mission to Haiti (YASUYOSHI CHIBA)

Kenya and Haiti signed a "reciprocal" agreement on Friday to deploy police from the East African country to lead a UN-backed law and order mission to the gang-plagued Caribbean nation, Kenyan President William Ruto said.

Ruto said he and Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry had "discussed the next steps to enable the fast-tracking of the deployment", but it was not immediately clear whether the agreement would counter a court ruling in January that branded the deployment "illegal".

Haiti's government has pleaded for international help to confront violence that has cost thousands of lives, as armed gangs take over entire swathes of the country, leaving the economy and public health system in tatters.

Kenya had previously said that it was ready to provide up to 1,000 personnel, an offer welcomed by the United States and other nations that had ruled out putting their own forces on the ground.

But a Nairobi court said the decision was unconstitutional, in part because the two countries had not signed a reciprocal agreement on the issue.

On Friday, Ruto said he and Henry had "witnessed the signing" of a reciprocal agreement in Kenya's capital Nairobi. Details of the document have not been made public.

"I take this opportunity to reiterate Kenya's commitment to contribute to the success of this multinational mission. We believe this is a historic duty because peace in Haiti is good for the world as a whole," Ruto said in a statement.

The UN Security Council had approved the multinational mission in early October but the Kenyan court ruling threw its future into doubt.

Opposition politician Ekuru Aukot, who had filed the petition against the deployment, told AFP on Friday that he would lodge a case "for contempt of court".

"What is emerging is that William Ruto does not care about the rule of law or the constitution of this country," he said.

"We will question the validity of this secretive agreement."

- 'A helping hand' -

In the face of criticism, Ruto had described the Kenyan undertaking as a "mission for humanity", in step with its long record of contributing to peacekeeping missions abroad.

Haiti, the Western hemisphere's poorest nation, has been in turmoil for years, and the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise plunged the country further into chaos.

No elections have taken place since 2016 and the presidency remains vacant.

Thousands of protesters have demanded Henry's resignation in line with a political deal that required Haiti to hold polls and for him to cede power to newly elected officials by February 7 of this year.

The prime minister, who is on a visit to Nairobi, told an audience of university students on Friday he aimed to "have elections as soon as possible".

"We need elections to stabilise the country," he said, but offered no specific timeframe for the polls.

On Thursday, the Caribbean Community bloc said Henry had agreed to hold elections by 31 August 2025 following a regional summit this week in Guyana.

In January alone, more than 1,100 people were killed, injured or kidnapped in Haiti, according to the UN.

"In October 2022, we asked the world to give us a helping hand. President Ruto was the first one to agree to come to Haiti and we want to say thank you to him," Henry said.

"We thank Kenya for its active solidarity."

The multinational mission -- initially approved for one year -- had envisioned Kenyan police on the offensive with their Haitian counterparts, who are outnumbered and outgunned by gang members.

Five countries have agreed to join the Kenya-led multinational policing mission, including the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin and Chad.

Last year saw nearly 5,000 homicides counted in Haiti, more than double the number in 2022, according to a UN report.

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