Haiti’s government declared a curfew and a state of emergency after nearly 4,000 prisoners escaped from two of its largest prisons. About 4,000 inmates managed to escape from two prisons following violence between several gang members.
According to a statement from the government, the curfew will be in force from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m., and this curfew will continue from Sunday to Wednesday. Both steps may be extended, depending on the situation.
The police have been directed to enforce the curfew and use all legal means to arrest all criminals.
“The curfew is in effect, and the police have been ordered to use all legal means to arrest all criminals,” Haiti’s Finance Minister Patrick Boisvert said.
Last Saturday, an armed group attacked a prison in the country’s capital, Port-au-Prince, killing 12 people. This time, four thousand prisoners escaped from that prison.
The armed group says it wants to force the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who is out of the country. The group currently controls about 80 percent of Port-au-Prince.
The prison in Port-au-Prince held gang members involved in the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise. Violence erupted in the country last Thursday when incumbent Prime Minister Ariel Henry went to Nairobi to discuss sending a Kenyan-led multinational security force to Haiti.
Jimmy Cherzier, better known as ‘Barbecue’, is the leader of the armed group or gang. Prime Minister Ariel announced a simultaneous armed offensive to remove Henry.
Haitian police sought the help of the military to protect the capital’s main prison, but before help could arrive, the prison was attacked late Saturday night.
A volunteer prison worker told Reuters that 99 prisoners still remain in prison, including former Colombian soldiers who assassinated President Moise. Perhaps they were left in their cells for fear of being killed in the crossfire.
Since the assassination of President Moise, the country has been engulfed in violence.
Haiti has not held national elections since 2016. Under a political agreement, elections were held, and the unelected Prime Minister Henry was supposed to resign by February 7, but did not.
