Haitian police yesterday were hunting for more gunmen behind the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise after killing or capturing six “mercenaries,” with the nation under a state of siege.
Security forces on Wednesday engaged in a fierce shoot-out with the suspected assailants in the capital, Port-au-Prince, after the overnight attack on the president’s private residence.
Four gunmen were killed by Haitian police, and two more taken into custody, while other members of the hit squad are at large, Haitian Police Chief Leon Charles said.
Photo: Reuters
Officials have not identified the suspects or said what their motives were for shooting dead Moise and wounding his wife, Martine, who survived.
The assassination has pitched the violence-plagued and impoverished Caribbean nation into further turmoil.
Interim Haitian Prime Minister Claude Joseph declared a national “state of siege” and said he was now in charge.
The UN Security Council was due to hold an emergency meeting over the situation as Haiti enters a two-week mourning period for the head of state.
Charles, the head of Haiti’s national police, vowed to catch the perpetrators.
“We are chasing them so that either in the exchange of fire they will be killed or we will apprehend them,” he said.
Three police officers who had been taken hostage had been recovered, he said.
The airport was closed in Port-au-Prince, but witnesses said that the city was quiet with the streets deserted and no extra security forces on patrol.
The attack took place at about 1am at Moise’s home.
Shell casings could be seen on the street outside as forensics experts combed the scene for evidence.
A nearby vehicle was peppered with bullet holes.
Magistrate Carl Henry Destin told the Nouvelliste newspaper that the president’s body had 12 bullet holes in it.
They were from large-caliber rifles and smaller 9mm weapons, to the forehead, chest, hips and abdomen, he said.
“The president’s office and bedroom were ransacked. We found him lying on his back, blue pants, a white shirt smeared with blood, his mouth open, his left eye gouged out,” he said.
Moise’s wife was first treated at a local hospital then rushed by air ambulance to the Ryder Trauma Center in Miami.
Joseph said she was “out of danger,” adding later that “her situation is stable.”
Their daughter, Jomarlie, was in the home during the attack, but hid in a bedroom, Destin said.
He said a maid and another domestic staff member had been tied up by the commandos who allegedly shouted “DEA operation” as they burst in, an apparent reference to the US Drug Enforcement Administration.
Joseph said that the president was “assassinated at his home by foreigners who spoke English and Spanish.”
“This death will not go unpunished,” Joseph said in an address to the nation.
Haitian Ambassador to the US Bocchit Edmond said that the killers were “professional” mercenaries disguised as DEA agents.
In Rome, Pope Francis yesterday sent his condolences to Haiti following what he said was the “heinous assassination” of the president.
Francis, who is recovering at a hospital from intestinal surgery, condemned “all forms of violence as a means of resolving crises and conflicts,” a telegram signed by the Vatican secretary of state said.
The message said that Francis was praying for the Haitian people and for Martine Moise.
Additional reporting by AP
GAINING STEAM: The scheme initially failed to gather much attention, with only 188 cards issued in its first year, but gained popularity amid the COVID-19 pandemic Applications for the Employment Gold Card have increased in the past few years, with the card having been issued to a total of 13,191 people from 101 countries since its introduction in 2018, the National Development Council (NDC) said yesterday. Those who have received the card have included celebrities, such as former NBA star Dwight Howard and Australian-South Korean cheerleader Dahye Lee, the NDC said. The four-in-one Employment Gold Card combines a work permit, resident visa, Alien Resident Certificate (ARC) and re-entry permit. It was first introduced in February 2018 through the Act Governing Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及雇用法),
RESILIENCE: Deepening bilateral cooperation would extend the peace sustained over the 45 years since the Taiwan Relations Act, Greene said Taiwan-US relations are built on deep economic ties and shared values, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Raymond Greene said yesterday, adding that strengthening supply chain security in critical industries, enhancing societal resilience through cooperation and deepening partnerships are key to ensuring peace and stability for Taiwan in the years ahead. Greene made the remarks at the National Security Youth Forum, organized by National Taiwan University’s National Security and Strategy Studies Institution in Taipei. In his address in Mandarin Chinese, Greene said the Taiwan-US relationship is built on deep economic ties and shared interests, and grows stronger through the enduring friendship between
CAUTION URGED: Xiaohongshu and Douyin — the Chinese version of TikTok — are tools the Chinese government uses for its ‘united front’ propaganda, the MAC said Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) yesterday urged people who use Chinese social media platforms to be cautious of being influenced by Beijing’s “united front” propaganda and undermining Taiwan’s sovereignty. Chiu made the remarks in response to queries about Chinese academic Zhang Weiwei (張維為) saying that as young Taiwanese are fond of interacting on Chinese app Xiaohongshu (小紅書, known as RedNote in English), “after unification with China, it would be easier to govern Taiwan than Hong Kong.” Zhang is professor of international relations at Shanghai’s Fudan University and director of its China Institute. When giving a speech at China’s Wuhan
ENHANCE DETERRENCE: Taiwan has to display ‘fierce resolve’ to defend itself for China to understand that the costs of war outweigh potential gains, Koo said Taiwan’s armed forces must reach a high level of combat readiness by 2027 to effectively deter a potential Chinese invasion, Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said in an interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister newspaper of the Taipei Times) published yesterday. His comments came three days after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the US Senate that deterring a Chinese attack on Taiwan requires making a conflict “cost more than what it’s worth.” Rubio made the remarks in response to a question about US policy on Taiwan’s defense from Republican Senator John Cornyn, who said that Chinese
RSS