PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Gangs attacked two upscale neighborhoods in Haiti’s capital early Monday in a rampage that left at least a dozen people dead in surrounding areas. Gunmen looted homes in the communities of Laboule and Thomassin before sunrise, forcing residents to flee as some called radio stations pleading for police. The neighborhoods had … Read more
This story contains a graphic image of dead bodies. Gangs have long wielded power in Haiti. But since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021, they’ve filled a power vacuum, taking control of roughly 80 percent of the capital and displacing more than 300,000 people with a campaign of kidnappings for ransom, rapes and … Read more
Jimmy Chérizier, the elite police officer-turned-gang leader known as “Barbecue,” has risen through Haiti’s political vacuum to become one of the country’s most powerful men. Chérizier — who got his nickname from his mother’s famous grilled chicken — has proved himself a savvy player of both traditional and social media and a charismatic leader who … Read more
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Caribbean leaders said late Monday that they “acknowledge the resignation of Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry” once a transitional presidential council is created and an interim premier named. The announcement was made by Guyana President Irfaan Ali, who held an urgent meeting earlier Monday in Jamaica with officials including U.S. Secretary of … Read more
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry announced early Tuesday that he would resign once a transitional presidential council is created, capitulating to international pressure that seeks to save the country overwhelmed by violent gangs that some experts say have unleashed a low-scale civil war. Henry served the longest single term as prime minister … Read more
KINGSTON, Jamaica — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is scheduled to meet Monday with Caribbean leaders in Jamaica as part of an urgent push to solve Haiti’s spiraling crisis, while pressure grows on Prime Minister Ariel Henry to resign or agree to a transitional council. It was not clear if Henry, locked out of … Read more
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — On a ride through the gang-controlled streets of Haiti’s capital on Friday, past an improvised barricade, the motorcycle taxi reached a crossroad. First came the smell — of something burning. Then, the sight: a corpse, charred black, lying in the middle of street, its bones and feet sticking out of the pile … Read more
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Rotting fruit, withered vegetables, empty water jugs and spent gas canisters now stock the stores and stands that serve Haiti’s poor — a consequence of the unrelenting gang attacks that have paralyzed the country for more than a week and left it with dwindling supplies of basic goods. The terrifying violence as … Read more
MIAMI — When Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry filled the void left by the assassination of the country’s president in 2021, he did so over the protest of wide segments of the population but with the full-throated support of the Biden administration. Now, almost three years later, Henry’s grip on power is hanging by a … Read more
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — The United States is urging Haiti’s embattled prime minister to clear the way for the election of a new president, a position vacant since 2021, amid growing pressure from armed rebels at home and governments abroad. Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, told reporters Wednesday that the U.S. government … Read more