US forces fly in to strengthen security at embassy in Haiti and evacuate non-essential personnel

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — The US military said Sunday that it had flown in forces to beef up security at the US Embassy in Haiti and allow non-essential personnel to leave.

The aircraft flew to the embassy compound, the US Southern Command said, meaning that the effort involved helicopters. It was careful to point out that "no Haitians were on board the military aircraft."

That seemed aimed at quashing any speculation that senior government officials might be leaving as the gang attacks in Haiti worsen.

The neighbourhood around the embassy in the capital, Port-au-Prince, is largely controlled by gangs.

"This airlift of personnel into and out of the Embassy is consistent with our standard practice for Embassy security augmentation worldwide, and no Haitians were on board the military aircraft," according to the Southcom statement.

In many cases, non-essential personnel can include the families of diplomats, but the embassy had already ordered departure for non-essential staff and all family members in July. The personnel ferried out of the embassy may have simply been rotating out, to be refreshed by new staff.

The statement Sunday said that the United States remains focused on aiding Haitian police and arranging some kind of UN-authorised security deployment. But those efforts have been unsuccessful so far.

Haiti's embattled prime minister, Ariel Henry, travelled recently to Kenya to push for the UN-backed deployment of a police force from the East African country to fight the gangs. But a Kenyan court ruled in January that such a deployment would be unconstitutional.

Henry, who is facing calls to resign or form a transitional council, remains unable to return home. He arrived in Puerto Rico on Tuesday after he was unable to land in the Dominican Republic, which borders Haiti.

On Saturday, the office of Dominican President Luis Abinader issued a statement saying that "Henry is not welcome in the Dominican Republic for safety reasons." The Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, has closed its land border.

"Given the current situation, the presence of the Haitian prime minister in the Dominican Republic is not considered appropriate," according to the statement, adding that "this decision reflects the firm position of the Dominican government to safeguard its national security and stability."

The statement described the security situation in Haiti as "totally unsustainable" and said that it "poses a direct threat to the safety and stability of the Dominican Republic."

The statement predicted "the situation could deteriorate even further if a peacekeeping force is not implemented urgently to restore order."

Caribbean leaders have called for an emergency meeting Monday in Jamaica on what they called Haiti's "dire" situation. They have invited the United States, France, Canada, the United Nations and Brazil to the meeting.

Members of the CARICOM regional trade bloc have been trying for months to get political actors in Haiti to agree to form an umbrella transitional unity government.

CARICOM said Friday that while regional leaders remain deeply engaged in trying to bring opposition parties and civil society groups together to form a unity government, "the stakeholders are not yet where they need to be."

"We are acutely aware of the urgent need for consensus to be reached," according to the statement. "We have impressed on the respective parties that time is not on their side in agreeing to the way forward. From our reports, the situation on the ground remains dire and is of serious concern to us."

In February, Henry agreed to hold a general election by mid-2025, and the international community has tried to find some foreign armed force willing to fight gang violence there.

CARICOM has also pushed Henry to announce a power-sharing, consensus government in the meantime, but the prime minister has yet to do so even as Haitian opposition parties and civil society groups are demanding his resignation.

Henry, a neurosurgeon, was appointed as Haiti's prime minister after the July 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise.

It was unclear whether Henry would be in Jamaica for the CARICOM meeting.

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