06.03.2024.
16:15
Chaos is sown; City after city fall and civil war ensues? PHOTO/VIDEO
Jimmy Chérizier, leader of the G9 armed gang, known by the nickname Barbecue, which is wreaking havoc in Haitian capital Port-au-Prince, has threatened civil war.
He demands that the Prime Minister of that country, Ariel Henry, does not resign, the BBC reports.
Chérizier issued the public threat as members of his gang attempt to seize control of the city's main airport to prevent Henry's return from abroad.
It was reported that the riots had spread to other cities, while a prison riot took place in the city of Jacmel.
The G9 began a wave of violence, including attacks on police stations and attacks on two prisons where they freed thousands of prisoners.
Haiti has been hit hard by gang violence for years, but the conflict escalated when Prime Minister Henry paid an official visit to Kenya last week.
The purpose of his trip was to secure an agreement with Kenya to send an international police force, led by Kenya, to help crack down on gangs in Haiti. The opposition, on the other hand, fears that he could use that force to stay in power.
His whereabouts were unknown for days until late Tuesday, when he flew from New Jersey to the US territory of Puerto Rico.
Henry came to power shortly after the assassination of former president Jovenel Moise in July 2021, without any elections.
Therefore, his critics consider his rule illegitimate, stressing that even two and a half years after he came to power, he did not organize new presidential elections, even though he promised to do so earlier.
Haiti does not have a single democratically elected government representative, there have been no elections in the country since 2016.
The vacuum created by the lack of elected officials has been filled by gangs believed to control about 80 percent of the capital.
Kidnappings for ransom have become commonplace, and even some hospitals have had to close due to deteriorating security.
The humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders (MSF) announced that it has temporarily suspended services in the field.
Until now, the violence has mostly been concentrated in the capital and its surroundings. But there were also reports of shootings in the southwestern city of Jeremy, and prison riots in Jacmel, in the south of the country.
According to UN data, around 15,000 Jews have been displaced due to gang violence.
The United Nations Security Council has announced that it will hold an emergency meeting later today to discuss the violence in Haiti.
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