International
Thousands of displaced people in Haiti flee the violence of armed gangs
Thousands of people living in the areas of Solino, Nazon and Christ-Roi, in the heart of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, have left their homes fleeing the advance of the armed gangs towards new territories, in the face of the indifference of the authorities and despite the presence of the Multinational Security Support Force, which leads Kenya.
“The gang members are very close,” a woman told reporters in tears, who has not known since Thursday morning the whereabouts of her children, who, like her, fled from the gangs, which since Monday have terrorized the Haitian capital, which has already left several dead, according to different media.
Last Sunday the leader of Vivre Ensemble, former police officer Jimmy Cherizier alias ‘Barbecue’, announced a resurgence of violence and asked the population not to leave their homes if it was not necessary, which has led to the paralysis of activities in the capital of impoverished Haiti.
Several dead in Haiti due to gang violence
Between Monday and this Thursday, several people have died, either at the hands of the gangs themselves or in clashes between armed gangs, according to local media.
Panic reigns in the different neighborhoods near the areas already under the control of the gangs, which last Monday shot two American commercial planes, which led to the closure of the Toussaint Louverture international airport, the main one in the country, and the suspension of flights by several companies.
EFE could observe this Thursday men, women and especially children with suitcases on their backs, or at least bags on their heads, fleeing their neighborhoods threatened by the gangs, trying to save what they could. A few people were able to move, taking everything with them.
Thousands of people have taken refuge in Bourdon, on the premises of the Citizen Protection Office, which had been housing students from the Faculty of Law and Economics of Port-au-Prince for several months, when she was evicted by the gangs.
More than 1,000 dead
This is the umpteenth public space invaded by displaced people fleeing the atrocities of the armed gangs belonging to the coalition of alias Barbecue.
Between July and September alone, at least 1,223 people died and 522 were injured as a result of violence and the fight against gangs, according to the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (Binuh).
Added to this are the 3,900 victims between dead and wounded in the first half of the year, after 2023 closed with about 8,000 victims.
Haiti had, until last September, 702,973 internally displaced people, according to official figures from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and it is very likely that these figures will increase with the upsurge in gang violence
International
Mexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed on Wednesday that the death toll from recent rains and floods across several central states has risen to 66, while the federal government has activated air bridges and prioritized assistance in 191 isolated communities.
“Unfortunately, 66 people have died, and 75 remain missing,” the president said during her morning press conference. She added that the official death toll will be updated later in a new report.
As of Tuesday, authorities had reported 64 fatalities. Sheinbaum also announced the creation of a public information center to centralize official data on the deceased, missing persons, damaged homes, and cut-off communities.
According to the president, the number of missing persons has decreased thanks to coordination with state authorities.
“Through calls to phone line 079, 103 people who had been reported missing have now been located,” she explained.
Priority Municipalities
The president noted that the federal government has classified 191 communities as ‘priority’, a designation based mainly on the percentage of homes affected.
International
New road and bridge explosions raise alarm amid indigenous protests in Ecuador
Ecuadorian authorities are investigating two explosions that occurred early Wednesday, one on a road in the southern part of the country and another under a bridge in Guayas province. These incidents follow the car bomb explosion in the coastal city of Guayaquil, also in Guayas, which occurred the day before and left one person dead and 30 injured.
Press reports indicate that one person was injured and several vehicles were damaged in the explosion on the Cuenca-Girón-Pasaje road in the south.
“Besides yesterday’s explosion in Guayaquil, we have received reports of explosives placed on bridges along the Guayaquil-Machala and Machala-Cuenca routes to disrupt traffic,” said Roberto Luque, Minister of Infrastructure and Transport (MIT).
On his X social media account, Luque reported that authorities have been deployed to the sites to assess the damage and determine the current condition of the structures.
“What they haven’t achieved with their call for a strike, some are trying to achieve through terrorism,” he stated, referring to the 24 days of protests organized by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities (Conaie) against rising diesel prices and other demands.
The protests, called at a national level, have Imbabura province as their epicenter. Roadblocks have also been reported in the northern part of Pichincha province, whose capital is Quito, while activities in the rest of the country continue normally.
International
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Ecuador’s Armed Forces carried out an operation on Monday — including airstrikes — against illegal mining in the town of Buenos Aires, in the country’s north, Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo reported.
The mountainous, gold-rich area has been a hotspot for illegal mining since 2017, located in the Andean province of Imbabura.
In 2019, former president Lenín Moreno deployed around 2,400 soldiers to the region in an attempt to curb the illegal activity. “The operation began with mortar fire, followed by gunfire and bombing runs by Supertucano aircraft,” Loffredo said in a video released by the Defense Ministry.
He added that the operation would continue on Tuesday with patrols across the area to locate possible members of “irregular armed groups that may have crossed from the Colombian border.”
The Armed Forces stated on X that the intervention focused on the “complete elimination of multiple illegal mining tunnels” in the areas known as Mina Nueva and Mina Vieja.
The operation coincided with the deployment of a military and police convoy into Imbabura, which has been the epicenter of protests against President Daniel Noboa since September 22, following his decision to scrap the diesel subsidy.
Mexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
New road and bridge explosions raise alarm amid indigenous protests in Ecuador
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
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