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| Caribbean-Latin America |
| Haitian vigilantes battle Barbecue's gangs in Port-au-Prince as country's elites vie for power - with island left in darkness after power stations are ambushed and dead bodies litter the streets |
| 2024-03-19 |
| Haiti's civil war has exploded as masked vigilantes fight back against Barbecue's bloodthirsty gangs - leaving the island nation teetering on the edge. Hundreds of dead bodies now lie unburied in the streets as residents band together to protect themselves against armed factions bolstered by thousands of convicts freed from stormed prisons. Chaos escalated since Prime Minister Ariel Henry was forced from office last week amid attempts by armed gang leader Jimmy 'Barbecue' Cherizier to seize power. Nearly 1.5 million Haitians are on the brink of famine and Monday's attacks on five of the state's power stations has left them 'completely dysfunctional'. 'Such acts of theft and sabotage only further aggravate the financial and technical situation of the company, by the acts of vandalism and terror of bandits,' a spokesman for EDH said. The attackers carried off electrical equipment, batteries, computers and office equipment, as well as company documents. It left much of the capital in darkness including the area around the US embassy in the east of the city. Around 80 per cent of Port-au-Prince was already in the hands of armed gangs before Henry was swept from power last week after announcing another delay to long-postponed elections. He is now stranded in neighboring Puerto Rico trying to broker a transitional government as the gangs extend their control, blockading fuel, food and water supplies outside the city. Cherizier, a former police officer turned gangster, has claimed responsibility for the latest surge in attacks, and said his goal is to capture Haiti's police chief and government ministers and prevent Henry's return to the Caribbean nation. Barbecue's threats will have struck fear into the hearts of many Haitians, with his reputation for burning people alive - something he has long denied - preceding him. But terrified residents are flocking to a vigilante movement known as 'bwa kale' which attempts to preserve neighborhood security through shared surveillance systems, checkpoints and patrols. |
| Posted by:Skidmark |