US Embassy Tells Americans in This Country to Leave ‘As Soon as Possible’

The U.S. Embassy in Haiti on Wednesday issued a “security alert” for American citizens to leave the impoverished Caribbean country “as soon as possible.”
US Embassy Tells Americans in This Country to Leave ‘As Soon as Possible’
Security at the U.S. embassy in the Tabarre neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on July 11, 2021. Valerie Baeriswyl/AFP via Getty Images
Jack Phillips
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The U.S. Embassy in Haiti on Wednesday issued a “security alert” for American citizens to leave the impoverished Caribbean country “as soon as possible” due to the deteriorating security situation.

“Given the current security situation and infrastructure challenges, U.S. citizens in Haiti should depart Haiti as soon as possible via commercial or private transport,” said the bulletin.

It continued to say that several airlines and charter companies, including American Airlines, JetBlue, Spirit, Air Caraibe, and Sunrise Airways, are offering flights out of Port-au-Prince and Cap-Haitien airports. American citizens still in Haiti and looking to leave via Port-au-Prince, the capital, should monitor local news frequently.

But it stipulated that “flights fill up quickly and seats may only be available several days or even weeks in advance of departure,” the Embassy said. “Given that there may be a limited number of seats, U.S. citizens should consider booking flights in advance.”

Americans should contact the U.S. Department of State if they are having issues leaving Haiti or need to request or apply for the return of a U.S. passport or another travel document to leave for the United States, according to the bulletin.

U.S. citizens who remain are urged to exercise extreme caution when traveling in Haiti and to avoid protests or large gatherings of people. If one encounters a roadblock, they should turn around and go to a safe area, the Embassy said.

Traveling to high-risk places in Haiti “may put you at increased risk for kidnapping, hostage-taking, theft, and serious injury,” said the State Department’s website. In those high-risk areas, the agency “cannot help you,” it warned.

The U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince on Monday also said it has restricted staff to stay at the embassy and residential compounds because of “ongoing police activity and gunfire” in the area around the compounds.

Deteriorating Conditions

Conditions in the Caribbean nation and Port-au-Prince have dramatically worsened in recent months amid escalating gang violence, while an American citizen and her daughter were kidnapped in late July and held for ransom by a criminal gang before she was returned to safety. Earlier this month, the U.S. Embassy in Haiti was closed due to gunfire in the city’s streets.
Several days ago, a gang opened fire on a church-led protest group in a suburb of Port-au-Prince, according to human rights groups. Hundreds gathered at the church near a Christian leader and marched before a local gang opened fire, a human rights director, Marie Yolene Gilles, told CNN.
A vehicle set fire by protesters burns during a demonstration against insecurity in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Aug. 7, 2023. (Odelyn Joseph/AP Photo)
A vehicle set fire by protesters burns during a demonstration against insecurity in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Aug. 7, 2023. Odelyn Joseph/AP Photo

However, Police Chief Frantz Elbe claimed that the group’s religious leader, identified as Marcorel Zidor, was accompanied by unidentified people wearing olive green and carrying assault rifles as they and the church members marched to the suburb, Caanan. The group, he said, was also armed with machetes and other weapons to try and rid themselves of a local gang.

The police said in a statement that they had tried to convince the religious group to stop their plan “to avoid a carnage by criminals who have an arsenal of war.” Mr. Elbe also noted that the group had not notified police about the protest as required, and that officers were unable to halt the crowd partly because it had split up into two groups.

“Police did everything to stop them,” he said at a news conference, calling the event a “tragedy.”

Amid the gang violence, hundreds of gang members have also been captured and killed by anti-gang vigilante groups since the unrest started. In one incident in April, mobs of so-called vigilantes were seen burning suspected gang members to death in a public area by using gas-soaked tires.

Other Incidents

Earlier this week, hundreds of people crammed into small white tents in the courtyard of a sports center in Port-au-Prince after they were displaced due to gang wars and shootings, according to the U.N.

Residents began moving out of their neighborhood area en masse starting Aug. 12, when armed gangs mounted their attacks on the area. Under-resourced police have struggled to fight off the armed groups that now control large parts of the capital.

The United Nations, meanwhile, has said that gang wars have displaced some 200,000 people internally and left 5.2 million people in need of humanitarian aid. The sharp increase in gang activity and violence came after the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in 2021.

In April, the U.S. Treasury Department placed sanctions on Gary Bodeau, former president of the Haitian Chamber of Deputies, for allegedly bribing government officials. The agency said Mr. Bodeau paid Haitian officials bribes to secure their votes for a 2018 vote and other forms of political support.

The United States has since backed a U.N. plan to send a multinational security force to Haiti, led by Kenya. It would focus on dealing with gang violence, namely in the capital. Last week, a 10-person Kenyan delegation visited Haiti to assess the situation, according to reports.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Jack Phillips
Jack Phillips
Breaking News Reporter
Jack Phillips is a breaking news reporter who covers a range of topics, including politics, U.S., and health news. A father of two, Jack grew up in California's Central Valley. Follow him on X: https://twitter.com/jackphillips5
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