Kenya’s government will not await a court of appeal ruling before deploying its forces to Haiti, a senior government official said, further underscoring the government’s determination to move ahead with the proposed multinational force aimed at bringing stability to the gang-ravaged Caribbean nation. Abraham Korir Sing’Oei, the principal secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told The New York Times in an interview that Kenya and Haiti were working to finalize a bilateral agreement in the next two weeks and that, once in place, Kenyan forces would immediately deploy. The declaration from Mr. Sing’Oei comes just a week after the country’s High Court blocked the deployment of 1,000 police officers, saying it could go ahead only if there was a “reciprocal arrangement” detailing the framework under which Kenyan forces can operate in Haiti. Mr. Sing’Oei said the High Court provided a legal pathway for the deployment, namely the bilateral reciprocal arrangement with Haiti. But he said the government was appealing the decision to a higher court anyway to seek clarifications on some findings the government “finds problematic.”

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Persons: Abraham Korir Sing’Oei, Sing’Oei, Kenya’s Organizations: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, New York Times, Kenyan Locations: Haiti, Caribbean, Kenya