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WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday that Haiti is on the verge of becoming a failed state.
“Haiti’s on the precipice of becoming an all-out failed state,” Blinken said during a US Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing.
On February 29, gang violence erupted in the downtown area of Port-au-Prince while Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry was visiting Kenya to discuss the deployment of foreign forces in Haiti to fight organized crime. The gangs said their goal was to prevent the prime minister from returning to Haiti.
Gangs took control of many parts of the city and stormed Haiti’s largest prison, freeing an unconfirmed number of inmates. The Haitian government responded by declaring a state of emergency in the capital region. On March 11, Henry announced that he would resign when a transitional presidential council was created.
The power of gangs in Haiti needs to be ended once and for all, Blinken said. Haitian police must be given the resources and support needed to regain control of the country, Blinken said.
Earlier this week, the Kenyan Foreign Ministry said that Kenyan police officers will arrive in Haiti soon to help improve the security situation in the country.
