Article

2007-03-01 Caribbean-Latin America

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) - U.N. peacekeepers and Haitian police seized the last remaining gang stronghold in Haiti's largest slum on Wednesday, the latest in a series of military crackdowns aimed at stabilizing the impoverished and divided Caribbean nation.

No shots were fired as scores of U.N. troops entered the seaside slum of Cite Soleil in armored vehicles and on foot, giving the international force sole authority over the lawless area for the first time, according to one U.N. official. The soldiers took over the gritty Bois Neuf quarter, a base for armed gangs blamed for a wave of kidnappings and killings. Seven suspected gang members were arrested in the raid but their leader, known as Beloney, managed to escape.

It was the last gang stronghold in Cite Soleil not occupied by the 9,000-strong U.N. force, known by its French acronym, ~~MISTAKE~~ MINUSTAH. Peacekeepers seized two other gang strongholds during raids earlier this month. "In terms of territory, 100 percent of Cite Soleil is now controlled ... by MINUSTAH with the support of the Haitian government," Brazilian military commander Col. Magno Barroso told The Associated Press.

But U.N. spokeswoman Sophie Boutaud de la Combe gave a more conservative assessment, saying only that peacekeepers "had established a presence everywhere that gangs had controlled," but do not have full control over the entire slum.

Posted by Steve White 2007-03-01 00:00|| || Front Page|| [11143 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 Good, but then what???

Posted by JosephMendiola 2007-03-01 01:15|| 2007-03-01 01:15|| Front Page Top

#2 Now burn it, Joe.

Posted by Skidmark 2007-03-01 06:06|| 2007-03-01 06:06|| Front Page Top

#3 Beloney? Who's his righthand man, Oscar Mayer?

Posted by tu3031 2007-03-01 10:07|| 2007-03-01 10:07|| Front Page Top

#4 They can make fun of PAPA DOC all they want...he understood his people.

Posted by borgboy 2007-03-01 13:45|| 2007-03-01 13:45|| Front Page Top

#5 I didn't know the Brazilians were there. You DON'T mess with those people. They have a habit of cracking heads and THEN finding out what the fight was about. Just ask anybody who's ever been to Rio during Carnival.

Posted by Old Patriot">Old Patriot 2007-03-01 16:07|| http://oldpatriot.blogspot.com/]">[http://oldpatriot.blogspot.com/] 2007-03-01 16:07|| Front Page Top

#6 You DON'T mess with those people. They have a habit of cracking heads and THEN finding out what the fight was about. Just ask anybody who's ever been to Rio during Carnival.

No kidding! Been there, seen it. Absolutely no sense of humor, or willingness to put up with any crap.

Posted by Grick Bonaparte6912 2007-03-01 17:59|| 2007-03-01 17:59|| Front Page Top

#7 Yup, the Brazilian police, more corrupt and violent than the gangs themselves, ya gotta love 'em.

Posted by Phaiper Ulose2044 2007-03-01 20:29|| 2007-03-01 20:29|| Front Page Top

08:52 Matt
08:38 Gleng Whaick2262
08:35 Gleng Whaick2262
08:35 Gleng Whaick2262
08:33 Gleng Whaick2262
08:32 Gleng Whaick2262
08:31 Gleng Whaick2262
08:28 Gleng Whaick2262
08:24 Matt
08:20 SteveS
07:43 Procopius2k
07:42 BrerRabbit
07:42 Procopius2k
07:39 Procopius2k
07:36 Procopius2k
07:35 Procopius2k
07:34 trailing wife
07:31 Procopius2k
07:30 NN2N1
07:22 NN2N1
07:18 trailing wife
07:14 Richard Aubrey
07:10 NN2N1
07:09 Besoeker