Gang leader 'Barbecue' in bloody attack in Haiti

Port-au-Prince

The gang leader "Barbecue" has attacked the government of Haiti

Martin Palmborg

Updated 11.28 | Published 11.27

Jimmy Cherizier, also known as "Barbecue" during a speech in 2021. Photo: Matias Delacroix / AP

It is still uneasy in the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince.

Gang criminals have attacked several police stations and shot dead four policemen.

- With our weapons and the Haitian people, we will liberate the country, says gang leader Jimmy Cherizier, better known as "Barbecue".

The attack began yesterday and was also directed at the city's airport. It was therefore forced to close, along with several schools, shops and government offices, after citizens fled in panic.

People flee clashes between police and gangs in Port-au-Prince. 80 percent of the capital is said to be under the gangs' control. Photo: Odelyn Joseph/AP

The bloody attack came at the same time as the country's prime minister, Ariel Henry, traveled to Kenya. There, the countries signed an agreement to send 1,000 Kenyan police to Haiti in the fight against the gangs, reports NTV Kenya.

Behind the bloody attack is one of the country's biggest gang leaders, Jimmy "Barbecue" Cherizier. In a clip that has been spread on social media, he talks about tying up ministers and preventing the prime minister from returning to Haiti, writes AP.

- With our weapons and the Haitian people, we will liberate the country, he says.

"Barbecue" 2023. Photo: Odelyn Joseph / AP

"No one is safe"

Shots were heard between the warring parties until late on Friday night. Armed vehicles have since patrolled the city's devastated streets.

- The area has been invaded by the gangs, many could not get out and some have locked themselves in their homes, says Pierre Alex Boucher, who lives in central Port-au-Prince, to AP and continues:

- The country must revolt against the gangs, no one is safe here.

Settlements in some areas have set up roadblocks to prevent the gangs from entering and plainclothes men have been seen carrying machine guns.

Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry in the middle, here in Kenya at the same time as the unrest is going on in his home country. Photo: Andrew Kasuku/AP

The gang controls 80 percent of the city

There is also a crisis going on within the country's police authority. 48 police officers were murdered and over 1,600 resigned in 2023. A total of 4,500 people were murdered, a doubling compared to 2022. The criminal networks are estimated to control 80 percent of the capital.

Last year, a collation was created between the "Barbecues" gang and another group called "G-Pep". Their common goal was to remove the current government. But just a few days after the collaboration was announced, it fell apart.

It remains to be seen whether "Barbecue" now has enough support from the country's other gang leaders, according to Diego Da Rin, a Latin America expert who belongs to the international crisis group.
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