Members of Gangs The Haitian armed forces, which have carried out several attacks in recent days, attempted to seize the Port-au-Prince international airport on Tuesday morning and were stopped by the military.
The situation in Haiti worries neighboring countries, with local authorities having great difficulty regaining control. On Sunday, the government declared a state of emergency and imposed a mandatory curfew following attacks against the country's two largest prisons by armed groups.
Thousands of prisoners easily escaped during the clashes, exposing the inability of security forces to confront criminal groups threatening to take over the country.
Key leaders took advantage of the visit of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who is acting as interim president Gangs Haitian forces join forces with the aim of overthrowing the current ruler.
To this end, criminal gangs, united under the so-called “G-9”, want to control the capital's airport to prevent Henry's return. The head of government left the country last week to attend a regional summit in Guyana, then traveled to Kenya, where he tried to negotiate the deployment of a police force to Haiti.
“We are seeing a turning point Gangs “It appears to be sending a message of intimidation to politicians who won't back down by consolidating efforts to topple the government,” International Crisis Group analyst Diego Da Rin was quoted as saying. Guardian.
Domestic and international commercial flights have been suspended due to the wave of violence, local media reported.
On Tuesday, armed men tried to invade facilities at Port-au-Prince airport through a hole in a wall, but security forces were able to stop them, the BBC reported.
However, according to experts, it is uncertain whether the military and police forces will be able to stop the intentions of more and better armed criminal groups. “You Gangs “They are showing that they can break Haiti at any time,” said Da Rin.
Haiti's recent history can be characterized as a series of crises with periods of stability. In 2021, then-President Jovenal Moise was assassinated in his residence by Colombian mercenaries, leaving a power vacuum that deepened the country's already precarious political situation.
Henry assumed the presidency in a controversial manner and the absence of elections — the last held seven years ago — leads the majority of Haitians to regard him as illegitimate. Along with the political crisis, the Caribbean nation has seen the security situation deteriorate with the growing power of armed groups that controlled much of the country's capital before the most recent attacks.
The wave of violence further worsens the humanitarian situation of the majority of people who are already facing dire needs. In recent days alone, some 15,000 people have been forced to flee their homes, many of them destroyed during the clashes, according to the United Nations. IDPs are concentrated in camps with improvised accommodation where minimum sanitary conditions are not met.
It has already estimated that 4.4 million people, 40% of the total population, faced “high food insecurity” before the latest attacks.
Instability in Haiti worries neighbors, from the Dominican Republic, which shares the same island. The government of Santo Domingo, which deported thousands of Haitians last year, said it would strengthen border surveillance and rejected the idea of establishing refugee camps on its territory.
In addition, several countries recalled their diplomatic staff and advised citizens in Haiti to return or avoid non-essential travel.
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