All posts tagged: Haiti

US Offers up to Million Bounty for Information on Finances of Powerful Haiti Gangs

US Offers up to $3 Million Bounty for Information on Finances of Powerful Haiti Gangs

Published by Sam Flores

By Harold Isaac and Sarah Morland PORT-AU-PRINCE, March 25 (Reuters) – ⁠The ⁠U.S. on Wednesday offered a reward ⁠of up to $3 million and possible relocation in exchange for information ​on the financial activities of Haiti’s Viv Ansanm and Gran Grif criminal groups. Washington has designated both groups, ‌which bring together hundreds of ‌gangs in the capital Port-au-Prince, agricultural Artibonite region and central Haiti, as terrorist organizations. The U.S. ⁠announcement marks ⁠a shift in tactics as previous bounties have been focused on individual ​gang leaders. Haitian security forces, with the support of a partially-deployed U.N.-backed force and a U.S. private military company, have intensified attacks on armed gangs that control most of the capital, but have yet to ​make a major gang leader’s arrest. Once dependent on sponsorship from elites, Haiti’s gangs have grown more ⁠economically ⁠independent as they cemented ⁠control over the ​capital and extended to rural areas in recent years. Besides controlling roads and checkpoints, they are ​accused of collecting funds ⁠through extortion, thousands of ransom kidnappings, gun, drug and organ trafficking, and theft …

From Haitian roots to viral fame: The rise of performer Ralph Beaubrun – arts24

From Haitian roots to viral fame: The rise of performer Ralph Beaubrun – arts24

Published by Sam Flores

To display this content from YouTube, you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement. Accept Manage my choices One of your browser extensions seems to be blocking the video player from loading. To watch this content, you may need to disable it on this site. Try again arts24 © FRANCE 24 Issued on: 17/03/2026 – 15:24 11:48 min From the show Reading time 1 min Dancer, choreographer and singer Ralph Beaubrun has built a global following with his joyful dance classes and infectious energy online. Now the Franco-Haitian artist is stepping further into music with his new EP “ID.2”, blending Afro-Caribbean rhythms, shatta and pop while singing in Creole, French and English. By: Source link

Police in Haiti Arrest Lawmaker Arnel Belizaire, Who Faces Charges Including Terror Financing

Police in Haiti Arrest Lawmaker Arnel Belizaire, Who Faces Charges Including Terror Financing

Published by Sam Flores

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Authorities say they have arrested Haitian legislator Arnel Belizaire, who faces charges including financing terrorism and conspiracy against state security. Haiti’s National Police made the announcement late Sunday, ending a hunt for the well-known lawmaker, who was first accused around two months ago. Belizaire previously characterized the arrest warrant against him as political intimidation. It wasn’t immediately clear if he had an attorney. The U.S. government already had accused Belizaire of “significant corruption” last year, announcing that he and his immediate family members were blocked from entering the United States. Belizaire was arrested in the early 2000s on an illegal weapons charge and sentenced to prison. He escaped and was rearrested, only to escape again following Haiti’s devastating 2010 earthquake. He was elected to Haiti’s parliament in 2011 and then rearrested when police noted that he had escaped during the earthquake. He was subsequently released following political pressure. Belizaire was arrested again several years ago, after being accused of arms trafficking, but those charges were dropped. Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All …

Police Drones in Haiti Have Killed More Than 1,000 People

Police Drones in Haiti Have Killed More Than 1,000 People

Published by José Betancourt

Sign up to see the future, today Can’t-miss innovations from the bleeding edge of science and tech With all eyes on West Asia as the US and Israel unleash devastating air strikes on Iran, another deadly conflict is already well underway: the political crisis in Haiti. According to a new report by Human Rights Watch and flagged by ABC News, drones controlled by Haitian security forces and private military contracts have killed at least 1,243 people between March 1, 2025 and January 21, 2026. Though the ongoing drone attacks are said to be part of a protracted campaign to reign in gang activity, there are at least 17 children counted among the dead, as well as 43 adults who are confirmed to have been civilian non-combatants. As the chaos of the skirmishes has mostly unfolded over the densely populated capital of Port-au-Prince, the number of innocent victims is only likely to increase — both as civil society groups gain a fuller accounting of the civilian dead, and as further violence rocks the Caribbean city. Since …

Human Rights Watch Details Deaths and Injuries of Police Drone Attacks in Haiti

Human Rights Watch Details Deaths and Injuries of Police Drone Attacks in Haiti

Published by Sam Flores

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) — Drones operated by Haitian security forces and private contractors have killed at least 1,243 people and injured 738 others, Human Rights Watch said Tuesday. Of those killed, 17 were children and 43 were adults not believed to be members of any criminal group. Of those injured, at least 49 were believed to be civilians, according to the rights group. The killings took place between March 1, 2025, and Jan. 21, 2026. The most lethal drone operation killed 57 people, it noted. “Haitian authorities should urgently rein in the security forces and private contractors working for them before more children die,” Juanita Goebertus, Americas director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. A spokesperson for Haiti’s National Police did not respond to a request for comment. The nonprofit said the number of armed drone attacks in Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, which is 90% controlled by gangs, has “significantly increased” in recent months, with 57 reported between November and late January, almost double that of the 29 attacks reported from August …

US hails progress on Haiti’s anti-gang force, but elections face steep hurdles

US hails progress on Haiti’s anti-gang force, but elections face steep hurdles

Published by Sam Flores

Speaking on the sidelines of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) summit on Wednesday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio welcomed additional commitments to the Kenya-led mission in Haiti, with countries such as Canada and Japan expected to contribute. If successfully deployed, the force could stabilise parts of the country and create conditions for a return to constitutional rule, he said. Yet on the ground in Haiti, the scale of the political and institutional breakdown raises serious doubts about whether elections can be organised in any credible form. “Those gangs are not a new phenomenon,” said Roromme Chantal, a former Haitian journalist and now professor of political science at the Université de Moncton. “The weakness of the state has repeatedly led those in power to rely on irregular armed groups. Over time, those groups gain autonomy.” Under the Duvalier dictatorship, the Volontaires de la Sécurité Nationale (VSN) acted as a paramilitary force to secure the regime. In the 2000s, armed loyalists known as “chimères” were mobilised around former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide. What began as political instruments gradually morphed into entrenched armed actors …

‘It is illusory to believe that an electoral process can be carried out in Haiti’

‘It is illusory to believe that an electoral process can be carried out in Haiti’

Published by Sam Flores

Haiti is in a state of war. More than 8,100 murders were recorded between January and November 2025, while armed gangs continue to organize, strengthen themselves both militarily and economically and expand their territorial control. These groups control almost the entire metropolitan area of the capital, Port-au-Prince, including all main access routes, and ever-larger parts of the Centre and Artibonite departments. They have also established connections with transnational drug trafficking networks, which in turn has increased their power. Logically, the White House listed Haiti among the countries most strongly advised against for travelers. Nevertheless, this has not stopped the US administration from announcing – against a backdrop of racist statements – that Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians living in the United States would end on February 3. Haitians had benefited from this renewable measure since the 2010 earthquake, which allowed nationals from countries in major crisis to remain in the US. The Department of Homeland Security declared that conditions in Haiti had improved enough to allow for a “[return] in safety”; that deporting Haitians …

In Haiti, the transitional presidential council hands over power to PM Alix Dider Fils-Aimé

In Haiti, the transitional presidential council hands over power to PM Alix Dider Fils-Aimé

Published by Sam Flores

Haiti’s Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils Aimé in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, February 7, 2026. FILDOR PQ EGEDER / REUTERS Haiti’s presidential transitional council, which has run the impoverished Caribbean nation for nearly two years, on Saturday handed power to US-backed Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, after failing to rein in rampant gang violence. The transfer of power between the nine-member council, created in April 2024, and 54-year-old businessman Fils-Aimé took place under tight security, given Haiti’s unstable political climate. “Our watchwords are clear: security, political dialogue, elections, stability. Mr Prime Minister, in this historic moment, I know that you are gauging the depth of the responsibility you are taking on for the country,” council president Laurent Saint-Cyr told Fils-Aimé. Fils-Aimé is now the country’s only politician with executive power. He faces the daunting task of organizing elections with the backing of a polarized political establishment. For years, Haiti – the poorest country in the Americas – has been in the throes of deadly gang violence, with frequent murders, rapes and kidnappings. Elections have not taken place …

US Judge Halts Trump Plan to End Protections for 350,000 Haitians

US Judge Halts Trump Plan to End Protections for 350,000 Haitians

Published by Sam Flores

By Nate Raymond and Andrew Chung Feb 2 (Reuters) – A federal judge on Monday blocked ‌the ​Trump administration from revoking legal protections for more ‌than 350,000 Haitians in the U.S., preventing their potential deportation to a country that has been ravaged ​by gang violence. U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes in Washington, D.C., halted the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s effort to terminate Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status. The move would ‍have taken effect on Wednesday despite spiraling violence ​there that has displaced more than 1.4 million people. Reyes, who was appointed by Democratic former President Joe Biden, issued the ruling in a class-action lawsuit ​brought by Haitians seeking ⁠to stop the administration from exposing them to deportation by ending their legal status. Reyes said in the ruling that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem likely violated the procedures required to terminate the protected status of Haitian immigrants in the U.S. as well as the U.S. Constitution’s Fifth Amendment guarantee of equal protection under the law. “Plaintiffs charge that Secretary Noem preordained her termination decision and did …

Haiti officials announce plan to oust prime minister, deepening US standoff | Politics News

Haiti officials announce plan to oust prime minister, deepening US standoff | Politics News

Published by Sam Flores

Transitional Presidential Council says plans to remove Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aime, flouting warnings from US. Members of Haiti’s Transitional Presidential Council (TPC) have announced plans to remove Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aime, flouting warnings from the United States against doing so. The announcement on Friday further deepens a standoff with Washington over the leadership of the crisis-wracked Caribbean country, which has repeatedly delayed elections due to spiralling gang crime and instability. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list “We are the ones who appointed ⁠Didier Fils-Aime in November 2024,” council member Leslie Voltaire said at a news conference. “We are the ones who worked with him ​for a year, and it is up to us to issue ‍a new decree naming a new prime minister, a new government and a new presidency.” Five of the nine-member panel had voted in favour of removing Fils-Aime and replacing him within a 30-day period, several members said. However, the vote had yet to be ​published in the country’s official gazette as of late Friday, a necessary …