Information
Haiti’s Prime Minister, Ariel Henry, has agreed to step down due to the increasing violence in his country. The Caribbean Community chair, Irfaan Ali, announced this on Monday, stating that Henry will resign once a transitional presidential council is established and an interim premier is named. Henry had been occupying the position without being elected since the assassination of the previous president, Jovenel Moise, in 2021. Ali expressed gratitude for Henry’s service to Haiti and acknowledged his resignation. A seven-member presidential council will be formed to oversee the transition to elections in Haiti and select a new interim prime minister. Henry is currently stranded in Puerto Rico, a US territory, following his return from Kenya last week where he had been lobbying for the deployment of UN-backed police in Haiti.
Caricom leaders held emergency talks in Jamaica on Monday to discuss the violence in Haiti. The meeting also included Canada, France, the UN, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Mohamed Irfaan Ali, the President of Guyana and the current Caricom chair cautioned that some Haitian groups are still not in the right place. Blinken announced $100 million in funding for a multinational force to help resolve the violent crisis in the country and an additional $33 million in humanitarian aid.
Source: Reuters, AFP, AP
Assessment
Though Haiti has seen a high level of violence for some time now, this escalation is still a significant escalation. Dealing with this situation will be challenging for the international community; during a time of increased global conflict, the US will likely have to deal with another tricky conflict. While the El Salvador President has offered to “fix” the solution, but it is unlikely that if this is to be a UN-sanctioned intervention, then El Salvador will be able to help due to the way they have conducted these types of operations at home. It will be interesting to see how the UN can try and come to a resolution on this issue noting the current challenges within the council.
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