Haiti’s communications secretary says police have arrested the “presumed assassins” of President Jovenel Moïse.
Frantz Exantus did not provide further details about the slaying of Moïse and the wounding of his wife on Wednesday, July 7, or say how many suspects had been arrested.
The killing is sure to bring more chaos to the unstable Caribbean country already beset by gang violence, soaring inflation and protests by opposition supporters who accused Moïse of increasing authoritarianism.
Interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph said the police and military were in control of security.
The poorest country in the Americas, Haiti has a history of dictatorship and political upheaval. The streets of Port-au-Prince were empty and quiet. In an interview with The Associated Press, Joseph called for an international investigation into the assassination, said elections set for later this year should be held, and pledged to work with Moïse’s allies and opponents.
Gunmen assassinated Haitian President Jovenel Moïse and wounded his wife in their home early on Wednesday, inflicting more chaos on the unstable Caribbean country that was already enduring an escalation of gang violence, anti-government protests and a recent surge in coronavirus infections.
Claude Joseph, the interim prime minister, confirmed the killing and said the police and military were in control of security in Haiti, where a history of dictatorship and political upheaval have long stymied the consolidation of democratic rule.
While the streets of the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, were quiet on Wednesday morning, some people ransacked businesses in one area. Authorities closed the international airport and declared a “state of siege.” The country appeared to be heading for fresh volatility ahead of planned general elections later this year. Moïse, 53, had been ruling by decree for more than a year after the country failed to hold elections and the opposition demanded he step down in recent months.