Ariel Henry

A governing council tasked with filling a leadership vacuum in Haiti and restoring a semblance of order was formally established Friday in the Caribbean nation, which has been rocked by an explosion of gang violence.

Haiti's gangs have made advances in Port-au-Prince, a U.N. official reported Thursday, with political parties inching toward forming a transition government and new bloodshed roiling the troubled Caribbean nation.

Police in Port-au-Prince confirmed that a major gang leader, Ernst Julme, known as Ti Greg, was slain in a clash with security forces. Julme led the Delmas 95 gang.

Fourteen bodies were found in an affluent suburb of Haiti's capital Monday, as international efforts accelerated to fill a political vacuum created by weeks of gang violence that has forced the impending departure of the prime minister.

The U.N. children's agency chief offered a dire assessment Sunday of the chaotic situation in Haiti, saying it was "almost like a scene out of 'Mad Max,'" which depicted a violent and lawless post-apocalyptic future.

"Haiti is a horrific situation," UNICEF executive director Catherine Russell told CBS talk show "Face the Nation."

Amidst unprecedented violence and turmoil in Haiti, Prime Minister Ariel Henry has announced his resignation, succumbing to mounting pressure from armed criminal gangs and calls for political change. Henry, who has been ruling Haiti since the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in 2021, faced escalating attacks by criminal groups demanding his resignation.

Haiti's prime minister agreed late Monday to step aside as armed gangs plunge his country into anarchy, as he accepted a regional push for a transition that sets the stage for international intervention.

With Haiti's capital spiraling deeper into gang violence, members of several diplomatic missions, including staff from the United States and the German ambassador, began leaving Port-au-Prince Sunday.

Haiti's main port was forced to close Thursday as chaotic gang violence engulfed the Caribbean nation and the United States told the absent Haitian prime minister to enact "urgent" political reform.

The U.N. Security Council expressed its concern over the deteriorating situation in violence-gripped Haiti on Wednesday, as Washington ramped up pressure on absent Prime Minister Ariel Henry to secure a political settlement.

He demands that the Prime Minister of that country, Ariel Henry, does not resign, the BBC reports.
Chrizier issued the public threat as members of his gang attempt to seize control of the city's main airport to prevent Henry's return from abroad.
It was reported that the riots had spread to other cities, while a prison riot took place in the city of Jacmel.