Residents Team Up With Police To Fight Violent And Powerful Haitian Gangs

Source: Giles Clarke / Getty

On Tuesday, Haitian gangs launched a coordinated attack on Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, but were met with resistance as residents and police teamed up to clash with gunmen.

According to AP, the attack on Pétion-Ville, which is a suburb of Port-au-Prince, was led by a coalition of gangs called the Viv Ansanm. The group’s spokesman and former police officer, Jimmy Chérizier, announced the plan on a social media video before the attack.

Authorities said the attack began when trucks with suspected gang members entered the  Pétion-Ville neighborhood, blocking the main entrance to the community.  Chérizier threatened the management and staff of hotels where politicians or “oligarchs” could be staying. He also demanded that Haiti’s transitional presidential council resign and that the gang would use “all its force” to make that happen, according to AP. Gunmen also set their sights on the neighboring community of Canape Vert.

But residents didn’t just sit back and let the gangs terrorize their community, many teamed up with police and fought back.

According to authorities, at least 28 suspected gang members were killed and hundreds of munitions seized. Witnesses also told AP that residents were so angered by the latest gang attack that some of the alleged gunmen were decapitated or had their feet cut off. Some of their bodies were also allegedly set on fire.

The latest attack on Haiti’s capital comes just days after Haiti’s Toussaint Louverture International Airport was forced to shut down after armed gangs fired on a commercial flight attempting to land in Port-au-Prince, wounding one flight attendant. As previously reported by iOne, the pilot quickly diverted the flight to the Dominican Republic, where it landed safely without further injuries reported among passengers. Spirit Airlines later confirmed that the plane had been taken out of service due to gunfire damage, and the airline suspended all flights to Haiti. JetBlue Airways and American Airlines soon followed suit, canceling flights to and from Port-au-Prince.

The attack coincided with the swearing-in of Haiti’s new interim prime minister, Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, appointed by the transitional presidential council. Fils-Aimé replaced Garry Conille, who had only held the position since May before political conflict led to his dismissal.

Fils-Aimé, an entrepreneur and former Senate candidate, has pledged to bring peace back to the capital, which remains plagued by gang violence and instability following an insurrection in March that ousted the previous prime minister and freed over 4,600 prisoners.

According to the United Nations, more than 20,000 Haitians have fled Port-au-Prince in recent days due to gang violence.  Gangs control an estimated 85% of the capital and the latest attacks suggest they will try to control even more.

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