Haitian gangs are trying to take over Port-au-Prince airport

Heavily armed gangs attempted to take control of Haiti’s main international airport on Monday, and exchanged gunfire with police and soldiers in the latest assault on key government sites in an explosion of violence that has included a mass release of prisoners from the country’s prisons. Including taking out.

Toussaint Louverture International Airport was closed when the attack occurred.There are no aircraft operations or passengers at the site.

Associated Press journalists watched An armored truck on the track is firing at gangs Attempts were made to stop them from entering the airport premises, while dozens of employees and other staff fled to escape the gunfire.

It is the worst airport attack in Haiti’s history.

Last week, there was brief gunfire at the airport amid continued gang attacks, but the gangs did not enter or take control of the airport.

The attack happened just hours after authorities arrived Haiti will order night curfew The violence comes after armed gang members attacked the two largest prisons and freed thousands of inmates over the weekend.

The 72-hour emergency began Sunday night. The government said it would try to locate escaped prisoners, including those who escaped from prison, where most were detained before trial, some of them accused of murder, kidnapping and other crimes. Were.

The acting prime minister, Finance Minister Patrick Boivert, said in a statement, “Police were ordered to use all legal means at their disposal to enforce the curfew and arrest all violators.”

It was estimated that gangs already controlled 80% of Port-au-Prince., Capital. They are increasingly coordinating their actions and choosing previously unimaginable targets, such as the Central Bank.

Prime Minister Ariel Henry traveled abroad last week to try to drum up support for a U.N.-backed security force to help stabilize Haiti in its conflict with increasingly powerful criminal groups.

The Haitian National Police has approximately 9,000 agents to provide security to more than 11 million people According to the United Nations, people They regularly find themselves overwhelmed and defeated.

The deadly weekend pushed violence in Haiti to a new low. At least nine people have been killed since Thursday, four of them police officers, as gangs stepped up coordinated attacks on state institutions in Port-au-Prince, including the international airport and the national football stadium.

But the attack on the National Penitentiary on Saturday night shocked Haitians who are accustomed to living under the constant threat of violence.

almost everyone About 4,000 prisoners escaped. On Sunday, three bullet injured bodies were lying at the entrance of the jail.

In another neighborhood, as residents walked past barricades set up with burning tires, the bloodied bodies of two men, their hands tied behind their backs, were found lying face down.

Among the few dozen people opting to remain in prison are 18 former Colombian soldiers accused of working as mercenaries in the July 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise.

“Please help us,” said the man, Francisco Uribe, in a message widely shared on social media. “They are indiscriminately massacring people inside the cells.”

Colombia’s foreign ministry has asked Haiti to provide “special protection” to the men.

A second prison in Port-au-Prince, holding about 1,400 inmates, was also attacked.

There are reports of firing in many areas of the capital. Internet service It was down for many residents as Haiti’s main mobile network said fiber optic cable connections had been cut during the chaos.

Following last week’s shooting by gangs at Haiti’s international airport, the US Embassy said it was suspending all official travel to the country. On Sunday night he urged all American citizens to leave from there as soon as possible.

Biden administrationwhich has refused to send troops to any multinational force to Haiti while offering funding and logistics support, it was said Following with grave concern Rapid deterioration of the security situation.

The increase in attacks follows violent protests that have turned more deadly in recent days as the prime minister traveled to Kenya to push a proposed U.N.-backed security mission that would be led by the East African country.

Henry assumed the post of Prime Minister after Moise’s assassination and postponed plans to hold parliamentary and presidential elections, something that had not happened in almost a decade.

Jimmy Charizier, a former elite police officer known as Barbecue who now heads a gang syndicate, took responsibility for the increase in attacks. He said the goal was to capture the police chief and Haitian government ministers and prevent Henry’s return.

The prime minister, a neurosurgeon, ignored calls for his resignation and did not comment when asked if he felt it was safe to return home.