Multinational Security Support Mission Commander Godfrey Otunge and Haitian National Police Director-General Rameau Normil chat as they await the arrival of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the MSS base in Port Au Prince, Haiti September 5, 2024.
The Kenyan commander of an international policing contingent in Haiti has vowed that the power struggle and recent threats of violence by two gang leaders will not stop them from securing the Caribbean nation.
Godfrey Otunge, commander of a Multinational Security Support (MSS) Mission, gave the assurance after the ouster of the interim prime minister and gun attacks on two American airlines in Port Au Prince on Monday.
The Presidential Transition Council (PTC) announced the replacement of Dr Garry Conille as interim Prime Minister with Alix Didier Fils-Aime, but the former insists his removal from office is illegal.
Amid the power struggle, two dreaded gang leaders - Jimmy Cherizier alias Barbecue and Jeff Gwo Lwa - warned on Sunday of imminent attacks and urged people to stay indoors.
Following the threats, a Spirit Airlines flight was hit by gunfire as it landed at Toussaint Louverture International Airport, while a second plane, a JetBlue jet, was hit after taking off for New York.
But Mr Otunge said in a statement obtained by Nation.Africa that the mission to secure Haiti was on course.
"As part of this mission, the MSS, in collaboration with officers attached to the Haiti National Police (HNP), continues to conduct joint operations and patrols aimed at disrupting gang activities and securing critical government infrastructure," he said.
Mr Otunge said they were still expecting more officers from Kenya and other countries to boost the peacekeeping mission.
Kenya, which has sent 400 police officers, joined by a small contingent from Jamaica and the Bahamas, plans to send another 600 officers.
600 officers
The 600 officers undergoing training are drawn from the General Service Unit (GSU), Anti-Stock Theft Unit (ASTU), Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU) and the all-Female Special Weapons and Tactics Team (SWATT).
"The MSS and HNP will continue to do this with the support of the Haitian people. We would therefore like to thank the Haitian people for their continued support and cooperation as we work together to tackle the gang-related threats affecting the country," he added.
A Kenyan officer told Nation.Africa that Barbecue, who leads a gang known as "Vivre Ensemble", had not been seen in public since June, when the foreign troops arrived.
"There is a video that is circulating here, but unlike in the past when he used to make public appearances, this has not happened in the last few months," the officer said, adding that there are clear instructions that anyone who causes mayhem should not be spared.
In the video seen by Nation.Africa, Barbecue claims that the gangs have been watching the foreign troops' operations and will strike soon.
"The time for the observation [of the situation] by the 'Vivre Ensemble' gangs is over, the time has come to take the destiny of this country into our own hands," he says in the video.
Another gang leader, Jeff Gwo Lwa, who heads the Canaan area north of Port-au-Prince, also urged people to stay at home to avoid being caught in the crossfire.
"To the population of the North, the Central Plateau, the Artibonite and the West, I ask everyone not to return to Port-au-Prince from this Monday [November 11, 2024], the roads will be impassable," he said.
The gang leaders' statements came amid a power struggle over who is the legitimate interim prime minister.
Journalist Wethzer Piercin told Nation.Africa that the gang leaders did not welcome the move to replace Dr Conille as interim prime minister.
"They do not agree with the decision to sack the prime minister. In the last two days we have seen an increase in attacks," Piercin said, adding that schools remained closed.
Just hours after the two gang leaders made the threats, the two American planes were attacked in the Caribbean nation's airspace.
When the JetBlue plane landed at John. F. Kennedy International Airport, the crew noticed that the exterior of the plane had been struck by a bullet.
"We are actively investigating this incident in collaboration with the relevant authorities," JetBlue said in a statement, adding that it had suspended all flights to the Caribbean nation for the entire month of December.
The Spirit Airlines plane was forced to land in Siantago, a northern city in the Dominican Republic. One flight attendant was injured in the attack.
Photos shared by our sources show that the plane was hit by several bullets. The company has also announced that it has cancelled all flights to Haiti.
MSS officers have been demolishing buildings around the airport which they believe were hideouts for the armed gangs.
Alix Didier Fils Aime, who was among those considered for the post before Dr Conille's appointment.
"I pledge before you, the members of the Presidential Council and the entire nation, to put my energy, my skills and my patriotism at the service of the national cause," Fils-Aime said in French as he was sworn in.
The new prime minister sits on the board of a local bank but has few political connections and little experience. He is also a businessman.
Dr Conille has insisted that his ouster is illegal, arguing that only the President can fire him. Haiti has no president at the moment.
Haiti has not held elections since 2016 and has been without a president since 2021 following the assassination of Jovenel Moise.
