Haiti’s main airport shuts down amid gang violence surge

Haiti’s international airport was forced to close on Monday after gangs opened fire on a commercial flight attempting to land in Port-au-Prince.

The escalation in gang violence has also led several airlines to temporarily suspend operations, as the Caribbean nation swore in a new interim prime minister who pledged to restore peace.

The targeted Spirit Airlines flight, arriving from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, came under gunfire as it neared landing, just hundreds of feet from the Port-au-Prince airport. Bullets struck the aircraft, injuring a flight attendant who suffered minor injuries. The flight was immediately diverted to the Dominican Republic, according to the airline, the U.S. Embassy, and flight tracking data.

The U.S. Embassy described the attack as part of “gang-led efforts to block travel to and from Port-au-Prince, which may include armed violence, and disruptions to roads, ports, and airports.” Spirit, JetBlue, and American Airlines responded by suspending all flights to and from Haiti.

Violence erupted across other parts of Haiti’s capital on Monday, as police exchanged heavy gunfire with gangs in several neighborhoods. Heavily armed officers took cover behind walls while terrified civilians ran for safety, and in some wealthier areas, gangs set homes on fire. Schools were forced to close, and panic spread in multiple communities.

- Advertisement -

The surge in violence follows a shakeup in Haiti’s interim government. On Sunday, a transitional council responsible for steering the country back toward democracy dismissed interim Prime Minister Garry Conille, replacing him with businessman Alix Didier Fils-Aimé. The council, however, has been marred by internal conflicts, and three of its members face corruption allegations.

Sworn in on Monday, Fils-Aimé vowed to bring stability to the crisis-hit country and to finally hold elections, which have not taken place in Haiti since 2016. “There is a lot to be done to bring back hope,” he said before an audience of diplomats and security officials. “I’m deeply sorry for the people … that have been victimized, forced to leave everything they own.”

Haiti has been gripped by weeks of political chaos, with many observers warning that the instability could escalate violence in a country where gangs have taken advantage of the power vacuum. Currently, the United Nations estimates that gangs control 85% of Port-au-Prince. A U.N.-backed peace mission led by Kenyan police has been deployed to combat the gangs, but the mission faces severe shortages in funding and personnel, intensifying calls for a larger U.N. peacekeeping intervention.

Louis-Henri Mars, executive director of Lakou Lapè, a peace-building organization in Haiti, explained that ongoing political infighting has given gangs more freedom to expand their control of Port-au-Prince, endangering civilians. “There will be more lives lost, more internal displacement, and more hunger in a country where half the population is on the brink of starvation,” he warned.

The transitional council, established in April, is tasked with selecting Haiti’s next prime minister and Cabinet, in hopes of easing the violence that surged following the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse. However, the council itself has faced internal strife and was at odds with Conille, whom they appointed six months ago.

Organizations like the Organization of American States attempted to mediate the council’s disagreements last week but were unsuccessful in stabilizing the fragile political landscape.

On Monday, U.N. spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric urged all parties involved in Haiti’s democratic transition “to work constructively together,” though he refrained from commenting on Conille’s ouster.

Reporting by Associated Press.