DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Five Armed Haiti Environment Agents Killed in Clash With Police
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) - At least five agents of Haiti's BSAP, an armed environmental agency that in recent years has evolved into a paramilitary body, were killed in a shootout with national police in Port-au-Prince on Wednesday, the police trade union told reporters. Haiti's national police did not immediately respond to a request for more details, or whether there had been any police casualties. Henry, who assumed power after the assassination of Haiti's last president in 2021, last week called on BSAP members to register with the country's environmental ministry in an apparent crackdown against the agency. Henry is expected to give a national address later on Wednesday. (Reporting by Harold Isaac and Steven Aristil in Port-au-Prince; Writing by Sarah Morland and Kylie Madry; Editing by Leslie Adlerby)

Persons: Haiti's, Ariel Henry, Guy Philippe, AyiboPost, Philippe, Jean, Bertrand Aristide, Henry, Harold Isaac, Steven Aristil, Sarah Morland, Kylie Madry, Leslie Adlerby Organizations: PORT, Reuters, Prince, Local Locations: Port, Haiti, U.S

☆ Haiti's Police Force Shrinks Amid Gang Crisis -Union
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

Police need significantly higher incentives to justify the dangers, the report said, amid a shrinking force and lack of equipment, training and infrastructure. Lazarre said the situation was difficult but police had made progress, recovering control of six neighborhoods and coming close to recovering another. Last November, the United Nations estimated some 3,960 had been killed through the year and 2,951 kidnapped. Haiti's government called for international reinforcements in October 2022 and the United Nations ratified sending a force composed of voluntary contributions late last year. Haiti's armed forces were disbanded in 1995 and reinstated in 2017, but the national police remains the main security force.

Persons: Lionel Lazarre, Lazarre, It's, Ariel Henry's, Harold Isaac, Sarah Morland, Stephen Coates Organizations: PORT, Reuters, Police, United Nations Locations: Kenya, Caribbean, Port, Mexico City

☆ Haiti Gang Wars Now 'Cataclysmic' in Key Farmlands -UN Report
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

(Reuters) - Haiti's brutal gang wars have spread from the capital to key farming heartlands, displacing tens of thousands of people and having a devastating impact on access to food staples, the United Nations said in a report on Tuesday. The violence has severely limited humanitarian access to the area, leaving support for victims of sexual violence to cash-strapped rural associations. Victims rarely come forward, the report said, due to fear of reprisals and mistrust of police. "We are continuing to receive reports of killings, sexual violence, displacement and other violence – including in hospitals," he said. "The much-needed multinational security support mission needs to be deployed to Haiti as soon as possible."

Persons: U.N, Human Rights Volker Turk, Turk, Sarah Morland, Harold Isaac, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Reuters, United Nations, Human Rights Locations: Artibonite, Bas, United States, Haiti

☆ Haiti Human Rights Group Suspends Operations After Threats
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

(Reuters) - Haiti's Center for Human Rights Analysis and Research (CARDH) is provisionally suspending its work due to imminent danger to its staff, its executive director said on Thursday, as gang wars escalate in parts of the capital Port-au-Prince. The United States and Canada have sanctioned several politicians and businessmen accused of helping finance gangs. CARDH has published reports on the living conditions of people displaced by the gang wars, suspected gang members being lynched by vigilante "Bwa Kale" groups, killings of police officers and assessments of foreign sanctions. It has also quantified the rise of what it calls a kidnapping "industry" under which gangs use extreme violence and torture to extract ransoms from families. (Reporting by Sarah Morland in Mexico City and Harold Isaac in Port-au-Prince; Editing by Bill Berkrot)

Persons: Prince, Gedeon Jean, Jean, CARDH, Sarah Morland, Harold Isaac, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Reuters, Haiti's, for Human, Cite Soleil, United Nations, West Department Locations: Haiti, United States, Canada, Artibonite, Mexico City, Port

☆ Haiti Halts Outbound Flights to Nicaragua -Media Report
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( Oct. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

The Miami Herald cited a bulletin sent to the aviation community that was then shared with the newspaper as the source of the information. The Haitian government has made no public announcement about the flights and Reuters was not able to independently confirm the suspension. The Port-au-Prince to Managua flights began in August and have mostly been operated by charter carriers. In recent weeks, as many as 15 flights per day have ferried thousands of Haitians to Nicaragua. The Miami Herald said an independent tally found more than 31,400 Haitians had taken the flights from August to October.

Persons: Harold Isaac, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: PORT, Reuters, Miami Herald, U.S, The Miami Herald Locations: Nicaragua, Prince, Managua, The

☆ US Court Charges Haitian Gang Leader in Attack on American Couple
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Oct. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) - A U.S. court has charged Haitian gang leader Vitel'homme Innocent for his role in the plot to kidnap an American couple and the death of the wife who was shot dead when armed men entered their home. According to court documents unsealed on Tuesday, after breaking into Jean Franklin and Marie Odette Franklin's Haiti residence in October 2022, Innocent's co-conspirators kidnapped Jean Franklin and demanded a ransom of as much as $150,000 for his release. (Reporting by Harold Isaac and Sarah Morland; Editing by Anthony Esposito)

Persons: Vitel'homme Innocent, Jean Franklin, Marie Odette Franklin's, Innocent's, Harold Isaac, Sarah Morland, Anthony Esposito Organizations: PORT, Reuters Locations: American, Marie Odette Franklin's Haiti

PORT-AU-RPINCE, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Haitian gangs run schools, clinics and foundations in place of an increasingly absent government, even as their criminal rackets help gang leaders amass funds and afford luxury homes with swimming pools in the hemisphere's poorest country. That was one of the findings of a comprehensive United Nations report published on Wednesday. "Gangs are getting stronger, richer, better armed and more autonomous," according to a 156-page report from a U.N. experts panel. The report concluded that gangs frequently use rape to terrorize and extort victims, demand money and control food supplies. The Caribbean nation's gangs have significantly expanded their influence in recent years, driving mass-migration and internal displacements while plunging millions into severe hunger.

Persons: They're, Bwa Kale, Harold Isaac, Sarah Morland, David Alire Garcia, Sandra Maler Organizations: PORT, United Nations, coalescing, Thomson Locations: United States, Caribbean, Port, Mexico City

☆ Hundreds leave Dominican Republic ahead of Haiti border shutdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Paul Mathiasen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Members of the National Army guard the bridge between the Dominican Republic and Haiti, after the shared border was closed when Haiti's President Jovenel Moise was shot dead by gunmen at his private home in Port-au-Prince, in Dajabon, Dominican Republic July 8, 2021. REUTERS/Ricardo Rojas Acquire Licensing RightsSANTO DOMINGO/OUANAMINTHE, Sept 14 (Reuters) - Hundreds of Haitians returned from the Dominican Republic on Thursday after the Dominican president announced an imminent total border shutdown amid a conflict over the construction of a water channel from a shared river. Harold Estimable, director of the national migration office in Ouanaminthe, said some 250 to 300 Haitians had been arriving daily from the Dominican Republic in "very bad shape." The Dominican Republic, which threatened to shut the border last week, argues construction works off the River Massacre violate a 1929 treaty. The U.S. Embassy, which has called on its citizens to leave Haiti, said on its website that those planning to leave for the Dominican Republic would need to make other arrangements.

Persons: Jovenel Moise, Ricardo Rojas, Rights SANTO, OUANAMINTHE, Harold Estimable, ", Luis Abinader, Santo Domingo, Abinader, Paul Mathiasen, Octavio Jones, Harold Isaac, Aida Peleaz, Sarah Morland, Leslie Adler, Stephen Coates Organizations: National Army, REUTERS, Rights, Dominican, United, United Nations, Local airline Sunrise Airways, U.S . Embassy, Thomson Locations: Dominican Republic, Haiti, Port, Dajabon, Ouanaminthe, Caribbean, Dominican, Haitian, Santo, U.S, Santo Domingo, Fernandez, Mexico City

☆ Hundreds Leave Dominican Republic Ahead of Haiti Border Shutdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Sept. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

By Paul MathiasenSANTO DOMINGO/OUANAMINTHE, Haiti (Reuters) -Hundreds of Haitians returned from the Dominican Republic on Thursday after the Dominican president announced an imminent total border shutdown amid a conflict over the construction of a water channel from a shared river. Harold Estimable, director of the national migration office in Ouanaminthe, said some 250 to 300 Haitians had been arriving daily from the Dominican Republic in "very bad shape." The Dominican Republic, which threatened to shut the border last week, argues construction works off the River Massacre violate a 1929 treaty. Later on Thursday, Haiti's government said that it has the sovereign right to exploit its natural resources, as does the Dominican Republic, in line with the 1929 treaty. The U.S. Embassy, which has called on its citizens to leave Haiti, said on its website that those planning to leave for the Dominican Republic would need to make other arrangements.

Persons: Paul Mathiasen SANTO, Harold Estimable, ", Luis Abinader, Santo Domingo, Abinader, Haiti's, Paul Mathiasen, Octavio Jones, Harold Isaac, Aida Peleaz, Sarah Morland, Leslie Adler, Stephen Coates, Diane Craft Organizations: Dominican, United, United Nations, Local airline Sunrise Airways, U.S . Embassy Locations: Paul Mathiasen SANTO DOMINGO, OUANAMINTHE, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Ouanaminthe, Caribbean, Dominican, Haitian, Santo, U.S, Santo Domingo, Port, Fernandez, Mexico City

☆ Dominican Republic to seal Dajabon border with Haiti in canal dispute
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Police officers ride with detained Haitian nationals to a migration clearance centre to verify their papers as the government is stepping up deportations, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic November 15, 2022. Raul Asencio/Courtesy by Listin Diario/via REUTER0/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSANTO DOMINGO/PORT-AU-PRINCE, Sept 11 (Reuters) - The Dominican Republic will seal its border with Haiti in its northern Dajabon province if a conflict over access to water from a shared river is not resolved in the coming days, a government spokesperson said on Monday. Dajabon is one of the few remaining functioning borders between Haiti and the Dominican Republic, which has been tightening its border security amid worsening gang warfare in Haiti, deporting tens of thousands who fled the crisis. The Dominican Republic will completely close off the border to land, maritime and air commerce if the conflict is not resolved by Thursday, Dominican authorities said in a statement, adding new visas for Haitians would also be suspended. Santo Domingo, which first ordered the border closure in a preliminary move last week, said it will seek talks with Haiti to find a "definitive solution."

Persons: Raul Asencio, Rights SANTO, Dajabon, Santo, Paul Mathiasen, Harold Isaac, Sarah Morland, Valentine Hilaire, Grant McCool Organizations: Police, Listin Diario, Rights, PORT, Santo Domingo, Thomson Locations: Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Rights SANTO DOMINGO, Haiti, Dajabon, Haitian, Port

☆ Haitians fleeing gangs set up camp around capital's main square
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( Harold Isaac | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

man carries an elderly man as they flee their neighbourhood Carrefour Feuilles after gangs took over, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti August 15, 2023. Dailove Pompilus, who was nine months pregnant, said she had no choice but to come to the Champ de Mars square after the gang attacked her home in Carrefour Feuilles, killing her 3-year-old son. Yves Penel, a theater manager speaking at the main square, said hundreds of people had arrived overnight on Thursday and they had created committees to manage food, water and hygiene. "I grew up in Carrefour Feuilles," said Penel. Thursday night marked the first time since the catastrophic 2010 earthquake that people have camped in the Champ de Mars, the capital's main square that is home to historical monuments honoring heroes of the Haitian Revolution.

Persons: Ralph Tedy Erol, Renel Destina, Dailove Pompilus, Sophia Jean, Yves Penel, de Mars, Clerina Coffy, Harold Isaac, Jean Loobentz Cesar, Sarah Morland, Andy Sullivan, Rosalba O'Brien, William Mallard Organizations: Carrefour, REUTERS, United Nations, . Security, Kenyan, Thomson Locations: Carrefour Feuilles, Port, Prince, Haiti, Haitian, Jeremie, Mexico City

☆ At least 7 killed after Haiti gang opens fire on church-led protest -rights group
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Aug 26 (Reuters) - At least seven people were killed in Haiti on Saturday, local rights group CARDH said, after a gang that controls a northern suburb of the capital Port-au-Prince opened fire with machine guns on a protest organized by a Christian church leader. Local media reported at least 10 had been killed, and CARDH director Gedeon Jean said the final number would likely be higher, adding that several people were wounded and some churchgoers had been kidnapped. Videos shared on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, showed some 100 people, many wearing yellow shirts associated with the religious group of Pastor Marco, marching in the suburb Canaan, some carrying sticks and machetes. Many Haitians have joined civilian self-defense groups known as "Bwa Kale," a movement that has inspired hope but also sparked retaliation against civilians and stirred fears the groups are spurring on the violence. Reporting by Harold Isaac and Ralph Tedy Erol in Port-au-Prince and Sarah Morland in Mexico City; Editing by William MallardOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: CARDH, Prince, Gedeon Jean, Pastor Marco, Kale, Harold Isaac, Ralph Tedy Erol, Sarah Morland, William Mallard Organizations: PORT, Local, Twitter, Thomson Locations: Haiti, Canaan, Port, Mexico City

☆ Storm Franklin hits Dominican Republic and Haiti, killing one
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Franklin, which brought stormy winds and rainfall across the Dominican Republic and neighboring Haiti, is forecast to gather strength over the Atlantic Ocean and could near hurricane force this weekend. "Franklin could be near hurricane strength over the southwestern Atlantic by Saturday," the NHC said, saying it expected the storm to gradually strengthen from its current maximum sustained winds near 40 mph. The head of the Dominican COE emergency services a man had been found dead earlier on Wednesday in San Cristobal province, after trying to swim through floodwaters. In a briefing with COE, Dominican President Luis Abinader said the government would attend to communities whose infrastructure was damaged by the storm and that schools and businesses would resume on Thursday. The storm also cut off access to six Dominican communities and damaged roads, water infrastructure and the electrical grid, emergency services said.

Persons: SANTO, Storm Franklin, Franklin, Luis Abinader, Paul Mathiasen, Harold Isaac, Sarah Morland, Harshit Verma, Ananya, Lincoln Organizations: PORT, U.S, National Hurricane Center, NHC, country's Hydro, Meteorological Unit, The United Nations, Food Programme, Thomson Locations: SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic, Hispaniola, Haiti, Puerto Plata, Dominican, Atlantic, San Cristobal province, Sud, Santo Domingo, Port, Mexico City, Bengaluru

☆ Haiti hospital cares for kids amid gang violence, hunger and scarce aid
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

After being turned away from Haiti's only general hospital, her daughter Myleisha was finally accepted at Fontaine Hospital, a UNICEF-sponsored facility in the capital Port au Prince - in an area the rest of her family considers too unsafe to visit. The Fontaine Hospital is located in the Cite Soleil neighborhood, where the G9 and G-Pep gangs have been fighting a vicious turf war. "We are in one of the poorest areas of the country, and also one of the most dangerous," said hospital founder Jose Ulysse. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) says nearly half of Haiti's population - some 4.9 million people - are going hungry. Without more UNICEF funding, hospital director Kareen Ulysse said she doubts the Fontaine can keep running for another year.

Persons: Pierre, Marie Michelle Joseph's, Moliere, Fontaine, Octavio, Myleisha, Joseph, Jose Ulysse, Celestin Fraceline, Kareen Ulysse, Haiti's, Octavio Jones, Harold Isaac, Sarah Morland, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Cite Soleil, REUTERS, Fontaine Hospital, UNICEF, au, United Nations, UN, Food Programme, Thomson Locations: Cite, Port, Prince, Haiti, Haiti's, au Prince, Kenya

☆ UN expert condemns 'mass deportations' of Haitians fleeing conflict
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] People carry their belongings while fleeing their homes and neighbourhood due to clashes between gangs, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti April 24, 2023. In a statement following a visit to the Caribbean nation, William O'Neill said some methods used to repatriate about 176,777 migrants last year do not comply with human rights standards and violate bilateral migration pacts. Inside Haiti, he added, "relentless violence and systematic human rights violations" do not allow for the safe and dignified return of migrants. Incidents of sexual violence in the capital Port-au-Prince doubled in May, he said, citing credible information received. A U.N. report last year found gangs were weaponizing sexual violence to control communities through fear.

Persons: Ralph Tedy Erol, William O'Neill, O'Neill, Prince, Ariel Henry, Jimmy Cherizier, Harold Isaac, Sarah Morland, Stephen Coates Organizations: REUTERS, United Nations, Haitian, Thomson Locations: Port, Prince, Haiti, Caribbean, Dominican Republic

☆ Dominican Republic, Canada disagree over Haitian police aid office
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Harold Isaac | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PORT-AU-PRINCE, June 16 (Reuters) - As Haiti's police struggle to contain powerful armed gangs, a disagreement between the Dominican Republic and Canada spilled out into the public on Friday, further complicating an international plan to boost Haiti's outgunned police force. A day after Canada's Foreign Minister Melanie Joly announced plans to set up a Canadian office to coordinate support for Haiti's national police this summer in the neighboring Dominican Republic, her Dominican counterpart denied any deal authorizing an office on Dominican territory. In a post on social media, Foreign Minister Roberto Alvarez said no deal been struck, adding that the Dominican government has not even discussed such a plan. The statement did not say whether the location would be in the Dominican Republic, which shares the Caribbean island of Hispaniola with Haiti. On Thursday, Joly announced plans to coordinate a police support operation from a base in the Dominican Republic and thanked Alvarez for providing it, according to a transcript from a Canadian government official.

Persons: Melanie Joly, Roberto Alvarez, Santo Domingo, Joly, Alvarez, Ariel Henry, Harold Isaac, Sarah Morland, Sandra Maler, William Mallard Organizations: PORT, Canada's, Dominican, Reuters, Haitian, Canadian, United, Thomson Locations: Dominican Republic, Canada, Dominican, Haiti, Hispaniola, Haitian, Santo, United States

☆ US blocks ex-Haitian PM Lamothe from entering country, citing corruption
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PORT-AU-PRINCE, June 2 (Reuters) - The United States on Friday blocked former Haitian Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe from entering the United States over what Secretary of State Antony Blinken said was his "involvement in significant corruption." "This action renders Lamothe generally ineligible for entry into the United States," the State Department said. In its statement, the State Department accused Lamothe of misappropriating "at least $60 million from the Haitian government's PetroCaribe investment and social welfare fund for private gain." Canada sanctioned Lamothe last November alongside Martelly and another former prime minister, Jean Henry Ceant, as part of measures targeting alleged backers of armed gangs in the country. The current caretaker government of Prime Minister Ariel Henry requested last October an international strike force to help restore order.

Persons: Laurent Lamothe, Antony Blinken, Lamothe, Michel Martelly, Jean Henry Ceant, Ariel Henry, Harold Isaac, Sarah Morland, Eric Beech, Costas Pitas, Tim Ahmann, Leslie Adler Organizations: PORT, Haitian, State Department, U.S ., Miami Herald, Lamothe, Martelly, United Nations, Thomson Locations: United States, U.S, Miami, Venezuelan, Canada, Ottawa, Haiti

☆ Haiti rights group decries 'inhumane' conditions in police jails
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 1 (Reuters) - Detainees in overcrowded cells in Haitian police stations are living in "inhumane, degrading conditions", a human rights group RNDDH said Thursday, with police relying on makeshift prisons amid insecurity and a crippled judicial system. Six police stations that the group RNDDH visited in Haiti's Ouest Department showed "very alarming" conditions, it said, urging immediate action from the judicial system, which has struggled for years and is facing strikes by staff calling for better work conditions. The rights group said many of the detainees in the Port-au Prince station had received no visits, reducing their access to food and water normally brought by relatives. Haiti has seen an escalation in violence by armed gangs, driving a humanitarian crisis that has displaced tens of thousands of people. Reporting by Sarah Morland in Mexico City and Harold Isaac in Port-au-Prince; editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: RNDDH, Sarah Morland, Harold Isaac, Robert Birsel Organizations: Haiti's Ouest, Prince, United Nations, Thomson Locations: Haitian, Haiti's, Port, au Prince, Haiti, Mexico City

☆ Haiti's deadly vigilante movement sees decline in gang violence, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The situation in the Caribbean country remains extremely volatile as heavily armed gangs continue to drive a humanitarian crisis that has displaced tens of thousands amid frequent kidnappings for ransom, gang rapes, tortures and murders. The vigilante movement, known as "Bwa Kale", began after residents of the capital Port-au-Prince lynched and set fire to over a dozen suspected gang members in the early morning of April 24. "Without making a value judgment, the 'Bwa Kale' movement has in just one month produced convincing, visible results; fear has changed sides," CARDH said in the report. Port-au-Prince, which CARDH estimates is now 60% controlled by armed gangs, sits in Haiti's Ouest Department where most of vigilante killings that it recorded - including lynchings, stonings, beatings and burnings - took place. Bwa Kale, CARDH said, likely emerged from the extreme cruelty inflicted by gangs, the ineffectiveness of the government, police and army and lack of international action.

☆ US State Department monitoring reports of kidnapped couple in Haiti
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PORT-AU-PRINCE, March 25 (Reuters) - A U.S. State Department spokesperson said Saturday the government is aware of reports of two U.S. citizens missing in Haiti, after media outlets said a Florida couple had been kidnapped. The couple was on a trip to visit family and attend a festival when they were kidnapped during a bus ride, the relative said, according to CNN. "We are aware of reports of two U.S. citizens missing in Haiti," the State Department spokesperson said. The security situation has devolved further in recent months with routine gun fights between police officers and the gangs. The group said ransom money was paid for the release of the captives, but a dozen had escaped on their own.

☆ Canada's Trudeau to deploy Navy vessels to Haiti for surveillance, presence
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

NASSAU/PORT-AU-PRINCE, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday said he would deploy Royal Canadian Navy vessels in the coming weeks to conduct surveillance, gather intelligence and maintain a maritime presence off the coast of Haiti. Canada, which this month deployed surveillance aircraft to Haiti, has also sent armored vehicles and security gear to support anti-gang efforts and said it would make an additional delivery of vehicles in the coming days. Trudeau also announced fresh sanctions on another two Haitian individuals determined to be supporting gangs, without disclosing their names, bringing Canada's total sanctioned people to 17. U.N. envoy to Haiti Helen La Lime has said she is "still hopeful" the force could be created, stressing the need for urgency. On Tuesday, more than 40 civil society representatives signed an open letter rejecting any draft resolution backing Prime Minister Ariel Henry's administration and demanding reparations to the families of those killed in a U.N.-linked cholera outbreak a decade ago.

☆ Haitians seen crushing into migration centers seeking passports to U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/4] Haitians gather outside an immigration office looking for turns to apply for a passport days after Haiti police blocked streets and broke into the airport during a protest demanding justice for fellow police officers killed by armed gangs, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti February 2, 2023. REUTERS/Ricardo ArduengoPORT-AU-PRINCE, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Haitians desperate for passports to apply for a U.S. migration program crowded local migration centers, according to videos shared on social media on Friday, crushing through small doorways and scaling the outside of stairways. Videos from Haiti's Lalue migration office and an improvised center at a sports facility in the capital Port-au-Prince show people climbing on railings of stairs and being crushed as they fight their way through crowds, clutching document envelopes. The move comes as the country expands Trump-era restrictions to rapidly expel migrants caught illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border on foot. Reporting by Harold Isaac in Port-au-Prince and Sarah Morland in Mexico City; Editing by Sandra MalerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Jan 26 (Reuters) - Haitian police officers on Thursday blocked streets and forced their way into the country's main airport to protest the recent killing of officers by armed gangs expanding their grip on the Caribbean nation. "PM is still at the Airport, unable to leave for now," said the source, who asked not to be identified. Haiti's National Police and the Prime Minister's Office did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Roads around Port-au-Prince and in several cities to the north were blocked by protesters. The proposal was originally made three months ago but no country has offered to lead such a force.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Canada has sanctioned former Haitian President Michel Martelly and two former prime ministers for financing gangs, Canadian authorities said on Sunday, the latest in a series of measures targeting alleged backers of Haitian criminal groups. In September, Haitian gangs created a humanitarian crisis by blocking a fuel terminal for nearly six weeks, halting most economic activity and triggering U.N. discussion of a possible foreign strike force to open the terminal. Canada and the United States have sanctioned political leaders who allegedly finance the gangs, which according to policy makers are backed by Haitian elites. Radio-Canada journalist Louis Blouin wrote on Twitter that the sanctions targeted Martelly, as well as former Haitian Prime Ministers Laurent Lamothe and Jean Henry Ceant. Ceant served as prime minister from 2018 to 2019.

☆ Dominican Republic steps up Haitian deportations, raising tensions
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 16 (Reuters) - The Dominican Republic is stepping up deportations of Haitians and is creating a police unit focused on foreigners, fueling tensions between the two Caribbean nations whose relations have for decades been marred by migration disputes. "Prime Minister Ariel Henry is very concerned about the mass deportations that are taking place in the Dominican Republic," said Jean-Junior Joseph, a spokesperson for the prime minister's office, in a statement on Wednesday. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk on Nov. 10 called on the Dominican Republic to halt deportations of Haitians, citing violence and systematic human rights violations in their home country. Abinader in comments broadcast by Dominican media described Turk's comments as "unacceptable and irresponsible," saying that the Dominican Republic did not have resources to help more Haitians and adding that authorities would boost deportations. Jean Bonheur Delva, head of the National Migration Office, told local media on Tuesday the figure was around 50,000 in the last three months.

Search resuls for: "Harold Isaac"

25 mentions found