Port-au-Prince (Agencies): The situation in Haiti has escalated to a critical point as armed gangs allegedly supported by Russia, have taken control of the capital, Port-au-Prince, following a series of jailbreaks from the country’s largest detention facilities earlier this month. The gangs’ increasing dominance has led to a state of chaos, with the U.S. Embassy staff being evacuated as a safety precaution.
The U.S. military has been deployed to secure the embassy compound and facilitate the evacuation of nonessential personnel. The operation involved helicopters, emphasizing the urgency of the situation. The neighborhood around the U.S. Embassy is reported to be largely under gang control, which has necessitated a swift and secure evacuation process.
Amidst the turmoil, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is scheduled to attend a meeting to discuss the country’s dire circumstances. The international community is on high alert, with world leaders gathering for crisis talks to address the gang takeover and the state of emergency declared in Haiti.
The Prime Minister of Haiti, Ariel Henry, has been unable to return home and is currently in Puerto Rico after being denied entry into the Dominican Republic for safety reasons. The Dominican Republic has also closed its land border with Haiti, citing the “totally unsustainable” security situation as a direct threat to its safety and stability.
This upheaval comes after a recent attack by gangs at Haiti’s international airport and the U.S. Embassy’s suspension of all official travel to the country. American citizens have been urged to leave Haiti as soon as possible, and all consular appointments have been canceled until further notice.
The U.S. remains committed to aiding Haitian police and is exploring the possibility of a U.N.-authorized security deployment to combat the gang violence. However, efforts to deploy a police force from Kenya to fight the gangs have been unsuccessful due to a ruling by a Kenyan court deeming such a deployment unconstitutional.