The US is arranging a flight to evacuate its citizens from Haiti, as gang violence paralyzes the Caribbean nation.
"We are arranging a charter flight to take U.S. citizens from Cape-Haitien to the United States, assuming the security situation in Cape-Haitien remains stable," the U.S. Embassy in Haiti said on March 16, referring to the country's second-largest city. The airport in Cape-Haitien remains open "routinely" for departures.
The announcement did not specify a time or how many people the flight could evacuate.
The US embassy described the approximately 200km road route from the capital Port-au-Prince to Cap-Haitien as "dangerous", urging its citizens to only consider evacuation flights "if they believe they can reach Cap-Haitien airport safely".
Haitian police confront gangs in the capital Port-au-Prince on February 29. Photo: AP
The US military evacuated non-essential personnel on March 10 and added additional military personnel to the embassy in Port-au-Prince to bolster security at the facility. Several other countries and the European Union (EU) have also evacuated diplomatic staff from Haiti.
The United Nations Mission in Haiti announced on March 13 that it would establish an "air bridge" from the Dominican Republic to facilitate the transport of aid into Haiti.
Gang violence has been on the rise in Port-au-Prince since late February, when Haitian acting President and Prime Minister Ariel Henry was in Kenya. Kenya is preparing to lead a UN-sanctioned international mission to help Haitian police regain control of the country.
The Haitian government declared a state of emergency on March 3 to "restore order and take appropriate measures to control the situation." Jimmy Cherizier, a notorious gang leader in Haiti, warned on March 5 that the chaos in Port-au-Prince would lead to civil war and "genocide" unless Mr. Henry resigned.
Mr. Henry agreed on March 11 to relinquish power at the time of the formation of a transitional presidential council and the appointment of an interim prime minister, paving the way for the first elections since 2016. Mr. Henry, 74, has been serving as prime minister and acting president since President Jovenel Moise was assassinated in 2021.
Nhu Tam (According to AFP )
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