The announcement followed the CARICOM Emergency Summit on the deepening crisis in Haiti.
Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry has resigned, according to Mohamed Irfaan Ali, President of Guyana and current Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).
Henry, 74, tendered his resignation after Caricom leaders convened an emergency summit to address the situation in Haiti, where gang-led violence has wreaked havoc amid repeated election postponements.
Mr. Ali said, “I accept his resignation in conjunction with the establishment of an interim presidential council and the appointment of an interim prime minister,'' and thanked Mr. Henry for his “contribution to Haiti.''
Henry, who is considered corrupt by many in Haiti, did not attend the closed-door summit. The Associated Press said a spokeswoman for Mr. Henry's office did not return calls seeking comment.
A coalition of gangsters led by Jimmy “Barbecue” Chéridier had warned of civil war if Henry, who became prime minister after the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021, did not resign.
Cherizier's gang went on a rampage when Henry left the country last week to rally support for a Kenyan-led foreign police intervention that the government said was necessary to restore order to hold elections. .
The prime minister was due to resign in February but has been effectively locked out of the country since the unrest escalated, landing in Puerto Rico last week after being refused entry to the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti.
CARICOM's Ali said the emergency talks in Jamaica aimed to bring “stability and normalcy” to Haiti, the region's poorest country.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also attended the summit and pledged an additional $100 million to the United Nations Assistance Force to stabilize the country, as well as $30 million in humanitarian aid.
Blinken said the meeting was “critically important” to Haiti and the region.
The US State Department said in a statement that the US supported “proposals developed in collaboration with CARICOM and Haitian stakeholders to facilitate political transition through the creation of a broad-based, independent presidential university.” Ta.
Blinken said the agency is tasked with responding to the “immediate needs” of the Haitian people, enabling the deployment of security missions and creating the security conditions necessary for free elections.
A U.S. official in Puerto Rico said Mr. Henry was free to remain in the U.S. territory or travel to another country, and that the prime minister confirmed his resignation in a phone conversation with Mr. Blinken.
