Haiti PM & his security detail forced out of official commemoration ceremony by armed gang

Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry and his security detail were forced to flee an official commemoration in the country’s capital, Port-au-Prince by heavily armed gang members. The nation’s security situation has deteriorated to an alarming level as according to The Guardian, the armed gang members then paraded in the delegation’s place and one of the crime bosses made floral offerings instead. Reportedly, on Sunday, 16 October, Henry and his security detail were driven back by a gang firing weapons as the politician tried to reach Pont Rouge to lay a floral wreath.

The latest report from Haiti regarding Henry being forced to flee an official ceremony came just a day after a dozen of US missionaries and their children were kidnapped in the capital in a separate gruesome attack. A video was also circulating on social media along with Haitian media showing one of the most notorious crime bosses, Jimmy “Barbecue” Chrizier, officiating at the ceremony to commemorate the assassination of one of the country’s revolutionary founding fathers, Jean-Jacques Dessalines. 

The Sunday ceremony is an annual event that takes place in the Pont Rouge area of Port-au-Prince to mark Dessalines’ assassination in 1806. One of Haiti’s founding fathers was killed after defeating a  Napoleonic army and abolishing slavery in the new country. While Henry was unable to reach the ceremony, videos that emerged from the day showed several official vehicles leaving Pont Rouge amid the crackle of gunfire. As per The Guardian, other members fled the area on foot. 

Cherizier, armed supporters made floral offerings

Notably, the pictures have also shown Cherizier, dressed in the dress code for Haitian officials for a national holiday. He wore a white suit and shirt with a wing collar, making floral offerings with his armed followers. He is a former policeman and a notorious head of the G9 and Family gan alliance, stated the media outlet. The armed supporters of Cherizier included several people wearing T-shirts with the face of late Haitian president Jovenel Moise who was assassinated this year. The T-shirts had the slogan “Justice for Jovenel”.

The latest gang-related violence in Haiti came while the law enforcement continued to search for the 17 western hostages including five children, who are held by another gang, the 400 Mawozo that operates in the east of the capital. 

(IMAGE: AP)