麻豆约拍

The Haitian Prime Minister, Ariel Henry, has resigned following days of fierce fighting in the capital Port-au-Prince.

Gang violence has been rife, with thousands of criminals freed from prison, and the streets have been largely deserted. There have been warnings of food shortages as the airport and ports have been shut. The heavily armed gangs opposing Mr Henry took advantage of his recent trip to Kenya to step up violence to force him from power.

The prime minister's resignation was announced after an emergency meeting of Caricom - a grouping of Caribbean nations to which Haiti is a member - also attended by the US which has supported the unelected Haitian leader.

Caricom also outlined a plan for a political transition to restore order following Mr Henry's resignation. Matthias Pierre - a former elections minister in Haiti - broke the news of the prime minister's resignation to Newsday before it was confirmed publicly.

"The situation is very precarious. After the prisoners have been freed, the gangs have been able to reinforce themselves. The prime minister has been out [of the country] since February 25th and certainly he has been under under pressure by some of the leaders of Caricom to resign."

"It was clear for me from early January that was the end of Ariel Henry, the principle is simple - he was supposed to organise elections and he didn't do anything to get there... [then] he announced he would be holding elections in August 2025 which would mean he would be ready to end power in 2026."

"I don't think we are getting better, the disaster has just started. The challenge is to... pick who is going to be part of that council of seven members and then... it will be a real drama for seven people to sit together to agree on one name to be prime minister."

"There is no way you can implement a solution without an armed force. And that armed force is not in Haiti. I don't see how they are going to be able to install the presidential council without the support of an [international] armed force."

"Pic: Ariel Henry, former prime minister of Haiti; Credit: EPA)

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