| French troops set up camps in northern Haiti on Friday, paving the way for relief organizations to deliver much-needed food and aid, French military officials said. The new outposts in Cap-Haitien and Gonaives are the first set up by foreign troops outside the Haitian capital. Rebels had isolated much of the north with roadblocks during the three-week uprising that helped oust President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, blocking supplies of food, fuel and water. About 200 French troops arrived in Cap-Haitien and about 140 French Legionnaires were sent to Gonaives, the city north of Port-au-Prince where the rebellion started. One of their key missions is providing security so relief organizations can help the needy, said Xavier Pons, a spokesman for the French military. Interim Prime Minister Gerard Latortue planned to visit Gonaives, his hometown, on Saturday. The multinational task force in Haiti numbers about 3,000 troops and includes U.S. Marines, Chilean and Canadian troops. Troops are helping the interim government disarm gangs, including armed Aristide loyalists. |