Oderin Joseph/AP
Residents flee their homes after clashes between police and gang members in the Portaire neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, February 29, 2024.
CNN
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Fierce gunfire at Haiti's main airport caused flights to be canceled and at least four people were killed at a police station, as the Caribbean nation faces a surge in gang violence and political instability.
American Airlines announced Thursday that it has suspended daily flights between Miami and Port-au-Prince's Toussaint Louverture International Airport.
“We continue to monitor the situation and adjust operations as necessary, with safety and security as our top priority,” spokeswoman Laura Masvidal told CNN.
Haitian airline Sunrise Airlines told CNN it had suspended “all flights until further notice to ensure the safety of our passengers, ground staff and aircraft.”
Shootings were reported in multiple areas of Port-au-Prince on Thursday. Sunrise Airlines said the shooting near the airport “damaged some aircraft and put passengers at risk” at the domestic terminal.
Haiti has been hit by a wave of riots and gang violence in recent years.
Warring gangs control large parts of Port-au-Prince, cutting off vital supply lines to other parts of the country. Gang members also terrorize the city's residents, forcing around 200,000 people to flee their homes amid a wave of indiscriminate killings, kidnappings, arson and rape.
About 1,100 people were killed, injured or kidnapped in January alone, in what the United Nations called the most violent month in two years.
Over the past year, more than 8,400 people have been victims of such violence, according to a report by the United Nations Office for Integration in Haiti (BIUH).
After the assassination of former President Jovenel Moïse in 2021, a wave of crime and violence began to sweep across Haiti.
Prime Minister Ariel Henry's failure to quell the unrest has sparked public frustration after Prime Minister Ariel Henry did not call an election that had been scheduled for last month due to the escalating violence.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Henry told leaders of other Caribbean countries during a regional summit that a vote would be held by August 31 next year, confirming for the first time when the vote would ultimately take place.
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Leaders of the CARICOM region, a political and economic grouping of 20 developing countries and most of them island states, said they had agreed to send a team to assess Haiti's electoral needs.
A powerful Haitian gang leader said Thursday's gun battles across Port-au-Prince were aimed at overthrowing Henry's government, multiple media reported.
Jimmy Sheridier, known as “Barbecue,” said in a video shared on social media that this fight was “more than just about defeating Ariel.” [Henry] According to the International Press Agency and Haitian media, it is a “government,” but it will “change the entire system.” CNN cannot independently verify the authenticity of videos.
At least four people were killed and three others injured in an attack on Bonrepo police station in north Port-au-Prince on Thursday, security officials told CNN.
Three other people were injured in separate attacks across the capital, one at the airport, a second near a prison in downtown Port-au-Prince and a third inside the prison, security officials said.
The U.S. Embassy in Haiti issued a red alert after reports of heavy gunfire near Main Street, where the embassy is located, on October 15th.
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The embassy said traffic in the area was blocked and barricades were set up at intersections near the site.
CNN has contacted the Haitian National Police for more information.
The fighting broke out on the same day that Henry visited Kenya to finalize details of the expected deployment of a multinational security assistance mission to Haiti. CNN has reached out to the Haitian government for comment.
The security mission, authorized by the United Nations, is seen by the international community as key to containing Haiti's full-scale radioactive fallout. Kenya volunteered to serve as a lead country in the mission.
Kenyan President William Ruto posted on Thursday: “We are providing the experience and expertise of our police officers to the multinational security assistance mission in Haiti, in accordance with the orders of the United Nations Security Council and the guidance of the Court.” did.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last week that the United States intends to contribute $200 million to the multinational security assistance mission to support the Haitian National Police with “planning, intelligence, airlift capabilities, communications, and medical equipment and services.” Ta.
