Ariel Henry, the prime minister of Haiti, is now in Puerto Rico and is unable to return to his home country. The US and the head of a coalition of gangs have both said that a change in leadership is overdue, thus Henry's future is far from certain.
The nation "heading straight for a civil war": According to the New York Times, gang leader Jimmy Chérizier, a former police officer going by the moniker Barbecue, a massacre in Port-au-Prince would not end unless Henry resigns. "If Ariel Henry does not resign, if the international community continues to support him, we are heading straight for a civil war," he said on Tuesday.
The gangs who dominate most of the city have liberated thousands of prisoners over the last week by attacking public structures such as the airport and two prisons. According to analysts, gangs in Haiti have banded together to attack the government rather than one another, unlike in earlier violent events that have occurred there (NPR).
Following President Jovenel Moise's killing in 2021, Henry was named prime minister; however, he was never elected, and there have not been any elections in almost ten years. According to The Times, Henry is under increased pressure from the Biden administration to cede authority. According to State Department spokesman Matthew Miller, the US is "urging him to expedite the transition to an empowered and inclusive governance structure," not "calling on him or pushing for him to resign."
According to the AP, Henry suddenly arrived in Puerto Rico on Tuesday because the Dominican Republic had blocked its airspace to flights to and from Haiti. Henry had been in Kenya advocating for the deployment of a Kenyan police force to Haiti. According to a source who talked with the AP late on Tuesday, Henry refused to consider proposals that he step down and insisted on going back to Haiti.
In Port-au-Prince, where gangs have taken control of at least eight police stations and stormed the police training school, CNN examines the security situation. According to Occil Francisco, a spokesman for Synapoha, the police union, the city has been "handed to the gangs." An estimated 15,000 individuals have had to leave their homes in recent days due to the worsening humanitarian catastrophe in the city.
Early in February, Henry had made a commitment to resign, and it seems that the "final straw" for gangs came when he reversed himself and said that security had to become better before he would go, according to ABC. Prior to August 2025, he declined to commit to holding elections. According to Matt Rivers of ABC, a top Haitian official warned him he was using the incorrect language when he brought up gangs, stating, "They are armed rebel groups and this is civil war."
The nation "heading straight for a civil war": According to the New York Times, gang leader Jimmy Chérizier, a former police officer going by the moniker Barbecue, a massacre in Port-au-Prince would not end unless Henry resigns. "If Ariel Henry does not resign, if the international community continues to support him, we are heading straight for a civil war," he said on Tuesday.
The gangs who dominate most of the city have liberated thousands of prisoners over the last week by attacking public structures such as the airport and two prisons. According to analysts, gangs in Haiti have banded together to attack the government rather than one another, unlike in earlier violent events that have occurred there (NPR).
Following President Jovenel Moise's killing in 2021, Henry was named prime minister; however, he was never elected, and there have not been any elections in almost ten years. According to The Times, Henry is under increased pressure from the Biden administration to cede authority. According to State Department spokesman Matthew Miller, the US is "urging him to expedite the transition to an empowered and inclusive governance structure," not "calling on him or pushing for him to resign."
According to the AP, Henry suddenly arrived in Puerto Rico on Tuesday because the Dominican Republic had blocked its airspace to flights to and from Haiti. Henry had been in Kenya advocating for the deployment of a Kenyan police force to Haiti. According to a source who talked with the AP late on Tuesday, Henry refused to consider proposals that he step down and insisted on going back to Haiti.
In Port-au-Prince, where gangs have taken control of at least eight police stations and stormed the police training school, CNN examines the security situation. According to Occil Francisco, a spokesman for Synapoha, the police union, the city has been "handed to the gangs." An estimated 15,000 individuals have had to leave their homes in recent days due to the worsening humanitarian catastrophe in the city.
Early in February, Henry had made a commitment to resign, and it seems that the "final straw" for gangs came when he reversed himself and said that security had to become better before he would go, according to ABC. Prior to August 2025, he declined to commit to holding elections. According to Matt Rivers of ABC, a top Haitian official warned him he was using the incorrect language when he brought up gangs, stating, "They are armed rebel groups and this is civil war."
