Haiti: No Easy Answers

Haiti's current situation worsens by the day and has been a long time in the making.

Jimmy “Barbecue” Cheriziert now threatened “civil war” and “genocide” if President Henry did not step down. Source

In the early hours of July 7, 2021, a team of 28 gunmen drove local vehicles to the residence of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse in the Port au Prince suburb of Petion-Ville. While some of the details remain disputed, the armed individuals reportedly identified themselves as agents of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) before entering the residence, fatally shooting the President 12 times and critically injuring his wife, Martine. 

A police manhunt ensued, with police shootouts claiming the lives of four of the fleeing suspects. Days later, police apprehended four more suspects hidden in bushes around the neighborhood. Months later, police arrested 11 suspects outside the Taiwanese embassy, where the suspects reportedly sought refuge and engaged in an hours-long standoff. The arrested suspects were comprised of Spanish and English-speaking commandos in the predominantly French-speaking country. 

In 2023, U.S. officials announced the arrest of an additional 11 suspects in South Florida with ties to a private security company that allegedly helped carry out the plot. In February 2024, police arrested 51 more Haitian suspects for their alleged involvement in the murder, including the late President's wife. Several suspects claimed that their top priority in the Moïse assault was to obtain a list of individuals linked to drug trafficking in the country, which the President reportedly planned to hand over to the United States. Perhaps most significantly, the assassination led to the swift rise of Ariel Henry, who served as Haiti's unelected acting president until announcing his intention to step down on Monday. 

A divisive figure in Haiti, public calls for Henry's resignation resulted in increasingly intense violence in the country. Much of this violence stems from former police officer Jimmy "Barbecue" Cheriziert, who now leads a coalition of nine gangs in open revolt against the state. On March 6, Cheriziert promised a civil war that would result in a "genocide" if the acting President did not step down, prompting an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council. 

With the Haitian government now on the brink of collapse, the U.S. and other countries are weighing options for intervention. This instability remains underpinned by decades of U.S. policies that have done more harm than good. Now, with an increasingly coordinated gang presence ruling the streets, the international community is increasingly hesitant to intervene. In this way, the situation in Haiti grows increasingly dire, and there are no easy answers in sight. 

A Burning Capital

Brutal fighting has displaced more than 15,000 Haitians in the capital. Often portrayed as random, hapless violence in a country mired by conflict, coordinated assaults in specific targets began shortly after President Henry's February 29 announcement of another delay in elections, this time until 2025. That day, men armed with machetes stormed the Bon Repos police station, eventually slaughtering the officers inside despite their repeated calls for help amid an hours-long standoff. On March 3, gunmen set fire to the area around the country's largest prison in Port-au-Price and sprayed the facility with bullets. By the end of the assault, only 100 of an estimated 3,800 prisoners reportedly remained inside the facility. Hours later, gang members attacked another prison in Croix des Bouquets.