Crisis in Haiti deepens with gang leader's bold threat against Prime Minister

For several weeks, dangerous gangs have taken more and more control over Haiti. Now, their leader, Jimmy Cherizier, a former police officer known in the country as "Barbecue", demanded the Haitian Prime Minister resign during an interview with the media.

Haitian gangs under the leadership of "Barbecue" are currently terrorizing the country. It all started at the end of February, when gang members attacked vital governmental places, airports, police stations, and businesses and took over two significant prisons, releasing 4,000 inmates. Now, the gangs control the majority of the country's territory, including its capital, Port-au-Prince.

Ariel Henry is the Prime Minister of Haiti and, since 2021, also its president after the tragic death of the previous one, Jovenel Moise, who was murdered by allegedly Columbian gangsters. Henry's figure caused many controversies, as he was postponing the legitimate presidential elections for almost three years.

Last Sunday, the Haitian government announced a state of emergency due to intensifying gang attacks. However, at that time, Henry wasn't in Haiti, as he was attending a special meeting in Nairobi, Kenya, negotiating the sending of a special military operation of a multinational armed force formed and ratified in 2023 by the United Nations and controlled by Kenya to stabilize the violent situation in Haiti.

On Monday, in turn, Henry was in Jamaica on an emergency meeting with Caribbean leaders and US Secretary of State Antony Blinkien, where the politicians were discussing how to resolve the crisis in Haiti. Prime Minister couldn't return to the country because of the gang's threat, and the day after, he released the video in which he resigned. Henry announced that there would be a transitional presidential council which would choose a new temporary prime minister.

On Sunday, the U.S. Southern Command informed that due to huge danger, the personnel of the US embassy in Haiti were evacuated by the air bridge.

Sources: Sky News, BBC, NBC News