President Jean-Bertrand Aristide said he's ready to die to defend Haiti, showing his determination to keep power despite a bloody but popular rebellion.
The US government urged Americans to leave the increasingly violent country.
Aristide's defiance and Washington's warning Thursday came as the US and other countries were preparing a political plan to resolve the crisis. US Secretary of State Colin Powell said it would be presented to Haitian government and opposition leaders soon.
PHOTO: EPA
"I am ready to give my life if that is what it takes to defend my country," Aristide told stony-faced police officers honoring slain comrades at a ceremony in Port-au-Prince, the capital in the south.
"If wars are expensive, peace can be even more expensive," warned Aristide, who has survived three assassination attempts and a coup d'etat.
Amid the chaos, the US urged the more than 20,000 Americans in Haiti to leave.
Some 70 Peace Corps volunteers were being withdrawn, and other citizens should leave while commercial flights are still available, the US State Department said.
The Pentagon said it was sending a small military team to assess the security of the embassy and its staff.
That comes four days after six men opened fire on two US Embassy vehicles at a barricade in Port-au-Prince, hitting one vehicle, according to an American who did not want to be named. The gunmen fled when an American fired shots into the air.
Six truckloads of armed gangsters drove Thursday night into St. Marc, west of Port-au-Prince, according to American missionary Terry Snow.
"Innocent people are being killed and houses are burned down every day and night in St. Marc and the police are doing nothing," said Snow, 39, from Granbury, Texas.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
SHOT IN THE ARM: The new system can be integrated with Avenger and Stinger missiles to bolster regional air defense capabilities, a defense ministry report said Domestically developed Land Sword II (陸射劍二) missiles were successfully launched and hit target drones during a live-fire exercise at the Jiupeng Military Base in Pingtung County yesterday. The missiles, developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST), were originally scheduled to launch on Tuesday last week, after the Tomb Sweeping Day holiday long weekend, but were postponed to yesterday due to weather conditions. Local residents and military enthusiasts gathered outside the base to watch the missile tests, with the first one launching at 9:10am. The Land Sword II system, which is derived from the Sky Sword II (天劍二) series, was turned