.The move came during the absence of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who was in Kenya trying to finalize details for the deployment of a foreign armed force to help Haiti combat gangs
.Gunmen shot at Haiti’s main international airport and other targets, including police stations, in a wave of violence that caught many people by surprise
The violence forced the airport, businesses, government agencies and schools to close as parents and young children fled through the streets in panic. At least one airline, Sunrise Airways, suspended all flights
Heavy gunfire paralyzed Haiti’s capital on Thursday and at least four police officers were slain as a powerful gang leader announced that he would try to capture the country’s police chief and government ministers.
The move came during the absence of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who was in Kenya trying to finalize details for the deployment of a foreign armed force to help Haiti combat gangs.
Gunmen shot at Haiti’s main international airport and other targets, including police stations, in a wave of violence that caught many people by surprise.
At least four police officers, including two women, were killed in an attack on a station near the community of Canaan, according to a police union.
The violence forced the airport, businesses, government agencies and schools to close as parents and young children fled through the streets in panic. At least one airline, Sunrise Airways, suspended all flights.
Jimmy Cherizier, known as “Barbecue” and leader of the gang federation G9 Family and Allies, was seen in a recorded video announcing that the aim was to tie up the police chief and government ministers and prevent Henry from returning to Haiti.
“With our guns and with the Haitian people, we will free the country,” he said.
A spokesman for the prime minister’s office could not be immediately reached for comment. The head of Haiti’s National Police, Frantz Elbe, and police spokesman Garry Desrosiers did not return messages for comment.
Gunfire still rang out Thursday evening and dozens of Haitians were seen carrying children and heavy bags stuffed with belongings as they fled from their neighborhoods. They raised their hands as a peace offering to potential gangs while rushing through intersections.
Armoured vehicles patrolled empty streets in downtown Port-au-Prince while others remained stationed near gang-controlled slums.
Residents in some neighbourhoods, including Canape Vert and Turgeau, set up roadblocks to prevent gangs from entering as men who were not wearing uniforms stood by with machine guns.
A court ruled last month that the proposed deployment was unconstitutional, but Henry and Kenyan officials have been working on a deal that would allow forces to arrive in Haiti soon.
Kenya which will lead the team to combat the gangs plans to deploy more than 1,000 officers to Haiti to help in the mission.
The teams are from the Rapid Deployment Unit, Anti Stock Theft Unit, General Service Unit, and Border Patrol Unit.
Plans are that Henry and other Kenyan security officials will sign a Memorandum of understanding to enable the process of deployment of the team to go on as planned.
This is after Haiti’s government announced on February 14 that it was working on an official agreement with Kenyan officials to secure the long-awaited deployment of a police force from Nairobi.
