UN rejects withdrawal of its personnel from Haiti amid escalation

United Nations, March 6 (Prensa Latina) The United Nations (UN) today rejected the withdrawal of its personnel in Haiti amid the alarming escalation of violence and the actions of gangs, especially in the capital.

March 6, 2024
16:26

A statement from Secretary General António Guterres considered the situation in Port-au-Prince extremely fragile and reiterated the need to take urgent measures, including financing the Multinational Security Support Mission, approved in October.

The spokesman for the UN chief, Stéphane Dujarric, insisted on his calls for the Government of Haiti and all interested parties to put aside their differences and move forward along “a common path towards the restoration of democratic institutions.”

His comments, prior to a closed meeting of the Security Council on the situation in the country, also warned of the need to access the population trapped by violence.

The displaced families are traumatized, the spokesperson added, confirming that the majority of the 15,000 Haitians forced to leave their homes during the last wave are women and children.

“Access to food, medical care, water and hygiene facilities, and psychological support are among the most urgent needs of civilians in Port-au-Prince,” he added.

Meanwhile, Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry remains in Puerto Rico without being able to return to the country after high threats from organized gangs.

Dujarric did not rule out that the multilateral organization is part of the efforts to support Henry’s return to Port-au-Prince.

“We are following his whereabouts very closely,” he noted in this regard.

For their part, UN humanitarian organizations warned of the impact of violence on hospitals, health centers and schools in Port-au-Prince and some other neighboring areas of Haiti.

According to reports, the health infrastructure is on the verge of collapse while the capital’s main public hospital closed due to violence and the inability of staff to reach the center.

Other major facilities receiving wounded civilians are overstretched, in part due to the number of people affected.

“The continued violence makes it extremely difficult for us to carry out our humanitarian work and, of course, focuses us on what we must do in the political sphere,” Dujarric stressed in this regard.

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